ORLANDO, Fla. – After a record number of voters cast their ballots early in the 2024 general election, there were also lines at several precincts as polls opened Tuesday for Election Day.
According to Orange County Supervisor of Elections Glen Gilzean, 55% of registered voters cast their ballots during early voting and through vote-by-mail.
The high turnout led to long wait times at early voting sites for several days.
“We had over 450,000 people cast their ballots and let their voice be heard during early voting and vote-by-mail,” Gilzean said. “It says it’s very historic and people want to let their voice be heard in this historic election.”
As of 1 p.m. Tuesday, roughly 80,000 people voted in person on Election Day, which put voter turnout at 64.11%
Gilzean said anyone wishing to vote on Election Day must do so at their assigned polling location and have a photo ID available to show to poll workers.
If a person has a vote-by-mail ballot, it can be dropped off at the supervisor of elections office or it can be exchanged at a voter’s precinct for another ballot.
At precinct 538, which is on the campus of the University of Central Florida, extra workers were on-hand to help with any voter registration address problems.
“We know that a large number of students are not from Orange County, but they’re active voters and they can have the opportunity to update their voter registration right then and there,” Gilzean said.
Anyone still planning to vote on Tuesday is urged to allow extra time for long lines.
Once polls close at 7 p.m., Gilzean said the results of early voting will be released.
“We’ll be tabulating those throughout the day and then providing the results immediately after the polls close,” Gilzean said. “As we start getting back precincts, then we’ll start getting those results out as well.”
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