ORLANDO, Fla. – On March 19, some voters across Florida will go to the polls in the first statewide election of the season: the Presidential Preference Primary.
Regardless of what happens leading up to March 19 in other states, there will be a presidential primary for Republican Party voters. In Central Florida, there will also be elections in cities and towns in Flagler and Orange counties, as well as ballot questions that local governments need voters to answer.
Here’s what you need to know about the March 19 election.
[ELECTION RESULTS: Here’s everything you need to know to vote in Florida in 2024 | 35 Florida myths and misinformation debunked]
Who can vote in the March 19 election?
Before we get into anything else, let’s make it clear: not everyone is eligible to vote on March 19.
The Republican Presidential Preference Primary is for GOP voters only. Florida is a closed primary state, so only GOP voters can vote in the primary itself.
There is no Democratic Presidential Preference Primary.
If you live in the following cities and towns, you also potentially have an election to vote in on March 19. These elections are open to all voters, regardless of party affiliation: Flagler Beach, Apopka, Eatonville, Edgewood, Maitland, Oakland, Ocoee, Winter Garden and Winter Park.
There are elections for mayors and commissioners, and there are ballot questions in some cities as well. If you are eligible to vote in any of these elections, you should get a sample ballot in the mail. You can also check for your sample ballot at the supervisor of elections for your county. You can find their contacts through the Florida Division of Elections website.
Are you registered to vote? Is your voter registration active?
The deadline to register to vote was Tuesday, Feb. 20.
Even if you can’t get your voter registration in person, you can still register online at Register to Vote Florida.gov.
To be eligible to vote, you must be:
- A citizen of the United States of America
- A legal resident of Florida
- A legal resident of the county in which you seek to be registered
- At least 16 years old to preregister, or at least 18 years old to register and vote
- Not be a person who has been adjudicated mentally incapacitated with respect to voting in Florida or any other state without having the right to vote restored
- Not be a person convicted of a felony without having your right to vote restored
There are no set rules for what makes a legal resident in Florida. The biggest thing is you must have a home in the state. Also, your home address cannot be a post office box.
When you apply, you will also need a Florida driver’s license or state-issued identification card and a social security number. Information from those will be required on the application.
If you are already registered to vote, you can check the status of your voter registration by going to your county supervisor of elections website. You can also change your party affiliation (by Tuesday, Feb. 20), look up your sample ballot so you can see who and what you will be voting for and also request a vote-by-mail ballot.
Find the supervisor of elections for your county through the Florida Division of Elections website.
When you look up your voter registration information, your status should be marked as “active.” If it’s marked as “inactive,” that means you have not voted in the last two federal elections, and your county elections office couldn’t get in touch with you to check your status. All you need to do is contact your county elections office to get your status updated.
What primaries are happening on March 19?
REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY
The biggest race happening March 19 will be the Republican Presidential Preference Primary. Only registered Republicans can vote in this primary, because Florida is a closed primary state. If you want to vote in this election, you MUST change your political party affiliation to Republican by Tuesday, Feb. 20.
Because the ballots were certified before the Iowa caucuses took place in January, there will be Republican candidates on the ballot in March who have long since suspended their campaigns. Because of this, the following candidates will be on the ballot in March:
- Ryan L. Binkley
- Chris Christie
- Ron DeSantis
- Nikki R. Haley
- Asa Hutchinson
- Vivek Ramaswamy
- Donald J. Trump
Nikki Haley suspended her campaign after March 5 (Super Tuesday), which means the only candidate left is former President Trump. However, Florida will still have a presidential primary on March 19, even if it’s just a formality, because the purpose of the primary is to determine which candidates get delegates to the Republican National Convention later this year.
Why is there no Democratic Presidential Preference Primary?
President Joe Biden did have a challenger still for the Democratic nomination, Minnesota U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips.
However, when the Democrats’ State Executive Committee met to finalize its primary ballot on Nov. 1, none of the 218 representatives on the committee submitted any other candidates for the ballot. Since only Biden was nominated, the state party chose to cancel the primary and award its delegates to Biden.
A federal lawsuit was filed by a Tampa lawyer, independent of Phillips’ campaign to force Democrats to add Phillips to the ballot, but a judge denied the lawsuit.
Phillips suspended his campaign after Super Tuesday.
What other elections are happening on March 19?
These cities and towns in Central Florida are having elections on March 19.
Flagler Beach in Flagler County has an at-large commission seat up for election, which means it’s open to all voters.
In Orange County, Apopka has two at-large council seats that are open to all voters.
Eatonville has two town council seats, as well as six ballot questions, which means all voters will have something to vote on.
Oakland has a mayoral race, which is open to all voters.
Ocoee has a District 4 city council race that is open only to voters of that district, as well as 13 ballot questions that all voters in the city need to decide on.
Winter Garden has two city commissioner races up for election.
Winter Park has a mayoral race and a commission race up for election.
In addition, the city of Edgewood has nine ballot questions that voters need to decide on, and voters in Maitland also have one ballot question.
For more details on these elections, including the names of the candidates and the wording for the ballot questions in all elections, we have a story posted HERE.
Voting by mail
Florida voters have until March 7 to request a vote-by-mail ballot for the election. The request is made through your county supervisor of elections office.
That request can be:
- Called in
- Made in person at the office
- Mailed, faxed or emailed in. If you do this, you must provide a signed request (in the case of an email, you must scan a signed letter and send it in as an attachment)
All requests must have this information:
- Voter’s full name
- Date of birth
- Address
- The voter’s Florida driver’s license number, identification card number, or last four digits of their social security number
“Voters have many options that they need to keep in mind as they go out to vote this year in March August and November,” Seminole County Supervisor of Elections Chris Anderson said. “And sometimes a vote-by-mail ballot can just be a failsafe if they can’t make it out to vote in person.”
Once you get your ballot, you must fill it out and return it to the county supervisor of elections office by 7 p.m. on March 19. Don’t forget to sign the envelope.
“The Postal Service has asked us to let voters know that if they’re going to send it back by mail that they do about five to seven business days prior to Election Day to ensure that the ballot gets in there on time because unfortunately if it’s not in this office by 7 p.m. It can’t be counted,” Anderson said.
You can return it by:
- Mailing it
- Turning it into the county supervisor of elections office
- Dropping it off at a Secure Ballot Intake Station (formerly known as drop boxes), located at early voting locations in your county
You can also track your ballot through the county supervisor of elections website, and if there is a problem the agency will let you know.
“They don’t even have to call us, you know, I call them and let them know. I can call email, text, whatever they choose, or all three and say, ‘Hey, we received it. We’ve counted it and you’re good to go,’” Anderson said.
We have more details about voting by mail, including tips for mailing the ballot, how many vote-by-mail ballots one person can turn in, and more HERE.
Early Voting
The early voting period is different depending on the county, but most counties in Central Florida will begin early voting on March 9 and end it on March 16.
Voters will be able to vote at early voting locations throughout the county, or at the county supervisor of elections office.
To vote, you need to bring a form of identification with a picture and a signature.
BREVARD COUNTY
March 9-March 16
- Monday-Friday: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Saturday-Sunday: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Find early voting locations HERE.
FLAGLER COUNTY
March 9-March 16
- Monday-Sunday: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Find early voting locations HERE.
LAKE COUNTY
March 7-March 16
- Monday-Sunday: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Find early voting locations HERE.
MARION COUNTY
March 9-March 16
- Monday-Sunday: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Find early voting locations HERE.
ORANGE COUNTY
March 4-March 17
- Monday-Sunday: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Find early voting locations HERE.
OSCEOLA COUNTY
March 9-March 17
- Monday-Sunday: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Find early voting locations HERE.
POLK COUNTY
March 4-March 17
- Monday-Sunday: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Find early voting locations HERE.
SEMINOLE COUNTY
March 9-March 16
- Monday-Sunday: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Find early voting locations HERE.
SUMTER COUNTY
March 9-March 16
- Monday-Sunday: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Find early voting locations HERE.
VOLUSIA COUNTY
March 9-March 16
- Monday-Sunday: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Find early voting locations HERE.
Voting on Election Day
If you prefer to vote on March 19, you will head to your assigned precinct. To find your precinct, look up your voter information on your county’s supervisor of elections website. We have the links below.
Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and remember, if you are in line to vote at 7 p.m., stay in line, you cannot be turned away. Remember to bring a photo ID.
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