ORLANDO, Fla. – Several locally elected Central Florida Democrats came together on Monday to encourage Floridians to vote on Election Day.
Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, U.S. Rep. Stephanie Murphy, along with State Representatives Kamia Brown, Carlos Guillermo Smith and Amy Mercado spoke at the Get Out the Vote press conference.
With less than 24 hours before polls open, the elected officials highlighted the importance of volunteering and encouraged voters to elect Democrats in what they described as a critical midterm election.
"We have great momentum, but now it's time to finish," Dyer said. "Our state's future is at stake."
Smith also emphasized the idea that every vote makes a difference.
"The only vote that doesn't count is the vote that is not cast," Smith said.
Monday's press conference came a day after early voting came to an end in Florida.
More than 5 million voters have already cast ballots, and records show Democrats have the slight edge.
New statistics released Monday by the state Division of Elections show that nearly 2.7 million people have voted early, and nearly 2.4 million people have voted by mail.
Democrats have cast 2.06 million ballots. Republicans have cast 2.04 million. More than 948,000 voters with no party affiliation have also voted.
This year's totals far exceed those of 2014 midterms, but are still short of the 6.6 million who voted ahead of Election Day in 2016.
Florida's more than 13 million registered voters are choosing a new governor and voting on a pivotal U.S. Senate contest.