Election day is hours away in Florida.
Voters will head to the polls Tuesday, Aug. 18, in Florida’s primary, making decisions on several state and local candidates, including Florida governor since current Gov. Ron DeSantis cannot run again due to term limits.
If you haven’t sent in your mail-in ballot, don’t! It’s too late to get it to the elections office before the deadline.
As of Aug. 16, almost 2 million voters have returned their vote-by-mail ballots or voted early in Florida, according to the Florida Division of Elections.
Here’s what you should do to make sure your vote counts, and what you’ll need to bring to the polls with you.
Florida’s primary election is Tuesday, Aug. 18.
Polls will open at 7 a.m. local time and close at 7 p.m.
Any voters waiting in line at 7 p.m. will be able to vote.
You must vote at your assigned polling location on election day.
Don’t know your voting location? Select your county and follow the directions from the Florida Division of Elections.
Ballots must be received by your local elections office no later than 7 p.m. on election day — Aug. 18 — so it’s too late to drop it in the mail.
You’ll need to return your vote-by-mail ballot at a secure drop box at your county’s Supervisors of Elections’ main or branch office.
You have until 7 p.m. Aug. 18 to return your ballot for your vote to be counted.
Visit your county Supervisors of Elections’ website for the locations, days, and hours of all secure drop boxes in your county. Contact information can be found here.
Yes. To track online your vote-by-mail ballot, visit the Florida Elections Office website for county-specific links at Vote-by-Mail Ballot Information and Status Lookup.
As of Aug. 16, 1,816,739 ballots have been returned:
See a breakdown by county.
According to state records, Democrats outnumbered Republicans in both mail-in ballots and early voting:
You must be registered to vote and you will be asked to provide a current valid photo with signature.
Acceptable forms of identification include:
“If your photo ID does not include your signature, you will be asked to provide another ID that has your signature,” according to the Florida Division of Elections.
The Florida general election day will be Nov. 3, 2026, two days after we turn clocks back an hour for the end of daylight saving time on Nov. 1.
Here are key deadlines to be aware of:
According to the Florida Division of Elections, these are the state and federal offices up for election or retention in 2026:
See the lists of candidates who have registered to run in each of the races at the Florida Division of Elections website.
To check you’re an active registered voter in Florida, go to the Florida Department of State’s Voter Information Lookup website.
You’ll need to enter:
If you’re listed as an active voter, you are eligible to vote.
The deadline to request a mailed ballot is 5 p.m. on the 12th day before the election.
In 2026, the deadline to ask for a vote-by-mail ballot for the general election is Oct. 22.
The general election will be held Nov. 3.
Voter guides for the 2026 Florida primary:
➤ The race for Florida governor
➤ The race for U.S. Senate
➤ Congressional District 2 voter guide to 2026 Florida Democratic primary
➤ U.S. House CD 2 voter guide to 2026 Republican Primary
➤ U.S. House CD 2 voter guide to 2026 Republican Primary
➤ Florida House District 9 voter guide to 2026 Republican primary election
➤ 2026 Florida primary voter guide to chief financial officer candidates
➤ Voter guide to Florida agriculture commissioner candidates, issues
➤ Second Circuit Judge Group 13: Voter guide to the 2026 election
➤ Second Circuit Judge Group 7: Voter guide to the 2026 election
No. Gov. Ron DeSantis cannot run again for governor because he has already served two consecutive terms. No one can run for three terms in a row, according to Article IV of the Florida Constitution.
DeSantis leaves the Florida governor’s mansion on Jan. 5, 2027.
Cheryl McCloud is a journalist for the USA TODAY Network-Florida’s service journalism Connect team. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY, at https://tallahassee.com/newsletters.
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Voting in Florida's primary tomorrow? Here's what you need to bring – St. Augustine Record
