ORLANDO, Fla. – Florida’s primary election is Aug. 23, and it has something for everyone, regardless of party affiliation.
While the primary will have several elections that are only open to members of political parties, there will also be elections for county commissioners, school board members and county and circuit judges. All of these elections are nonpartisan, meaning everyone who is registered can vote in them.
[RELATED: Everything you need to know about elections in Florida | Everything you need to know to vote by mail in Florida ]
There will also be universal primaries, which is a party primary that is open to everyone living in that district.
Here’s what you need to know to vote in the 2022 Florida primary.
Offices up for election
In the August election, Floridians will decide on:
- Democratic candidates for governor, attorney general and agricultural commissioner
- Republican candidate for agricultural commissioner
- Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate
- U.S. House races for both parties
- Florida Senate and House races for both parties
- County commission races (some counties have nonpartisan races, some counties have partisan races)
- Nonpartisan school board races
- Some nonpartisan city races
- County and circuit court judgeships
Scroll down to see a list of News 6′s Key Races.
[RELATED: Trying to decide what Florida candidate to vote for? These guides may help]
Are you registered to vote?
Voter registration for the August primary ends on July 25, so if you had not registered to vote in Florida by then, you will not be allowed to vote on Aug. 23. You have until Oct. 11 to make sure you can vote in the November election, so be sure to get your voter registration in by then.
Election supervisors across Central Florida have been busy processing new registrations.
“You want to make sure you get all of your stuff taken care of as soon as possible so You are eligible to vote in the primary,” said Seminole County Supervisor of Elections Chris Anderson.
Even if you can’t get your voter registration in in person, you can still register online before midnight to vote in the primary election. Go to Register to Vote Florida.gov.
“You can do it online, but the key part is if you do it online it’s got to match up with your driver’s license and capture your signature,” said Orange County Supervisor of Elections Bill Cowles.
If you are registered to vote, you can check the status of your voter registration by going to your county supervisor of elections website. You can also look up your sample ballot so you can see who and what you will be voting for. Check out the map below to find your county information.
If you look up your voter status and it says “inactive,” you need to contact your county supervisor of elections office. Once you do that, you should be able to vote in the August primary.
Voting by mail
You have until Aug. 13 to request a vote-by-mail ballot from 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
In a new change by the Florida Legislature, those identification numbers are required to be on file with the county supervisor of elections office in order to get your VBM ballot request approved.
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 Aug. 23. Don’t forget to sign the envelope.
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. All counties will have these stations during early voting hours.
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 Aug. 13, and end by Aug. 20.
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.
To find out what forms of identification are allowed, and what to do if you don’t have an ID, click HERE.
NOTE: Early voting ended on Sunday, Aug. 21. Early voting for the November general election will begin in October.
ORANGE COUNTY
- Primary Early Voting – Aug. 8 through Aug. 21, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
SEMINOLE COUNTY
- Primary Early Voting – Aug. 13 through Aug. 20, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
OSCEOLA COUNTY
- Primary Early Voting – Aug. 8 through Aug. 21, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
VOLUSIA COUNTY
- Primary Early Voting – Aug. 13 through Aug. 20, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
BREVARD COUNTY
- Primary Early Voting – Aug. 13 through Aug. 20 Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
LAKE COUNTY
- Primary Early Voting – Aug. 11 through Aug. 20, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
MARION COUNTY
- Primary Early Voting – Aug. 13 through Aug. 20, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
FLAGLER COUNTY
- Primary Early Voting – Aug. 13 through Aug. 20, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
SUMTER COUNTY
- Primary Early Voting – Aug. 13 through Aug. 20, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
POLK COUNTY
- Primary Early Voting – Aug. 13 through Aug. 20, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Drop boxes have a new name
In 2021, Florida lawmakers tried to get rid of ballot drop boxes, but in the end, they just changed the name and mandated monitoring.
Ballot drop boxes were extremely popular amid the pandemic in 2020, because people could drop their vote-by-mail ballots off without having to go into a polling place or using the postal service.
In Central Florida, county elections offices had them at early voting locations and, in some cases, the elections offices themselves.
Now, these drop boxes are called “secure ballot intake stations.” But we asked every Central Florida elections supervisor if there would be any other difference between 2020 and 2022, and the answer was generally “no.”
“Those fancy-sounding stations are the same items as the former drop boxes, just renamed,” Lake County supervisor Alan Hays said. “The renaming necessitated the changing of all the signage associated with the boxes but nothing more has changed.”
All counties will have secure ballot intake stations at early voting places during polling hours for people who want to vote by mail and turn their ballots in. You can also always take your ballots to the county supervisor of elections offices.
Meanwhile, all counties will have monitored drop boxes in all early voting locations where people can drop off their vote-by-mail ballots.
Voting on Election Day
If you prefer to vote on Aug. 23, you will head to your assigned precinct. To find your precinct, look up your voter info 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.
News 6′s Key Races
There are 141 races in Central Florida’s 10-county area this August. News 6 will have results for all races when they come in. Every race is important, but Central Floridians should keep a close eye on these races. We consider them key ballot items to watch for the Aug. 23 primary election. Check them out below.
NOTE: Some incumbents did not draw any challengers and do not have to go through a party primary. They will be on the ballot in November. These include Florida governor, attorney general and U.S. Senate races.