As the November election approaches despite the COVID-19 pandemic, UF students both on and off campus have different options for how to cast their vote.
UF students who plan to vote in the presidential election this November can do so by mail or in person. If they live on campus, they can vote at the Reitz Union on the ground floor of the Career Connections Center.
Early voting opens on Oct. 19 and lasts until Oct. 31. On-campus early voting will be open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
There are six early voting polling places in Alachua County, including the Reitz, and the addresses can be found on the Supervisor of Elections’ website. Voters can vote at any of these during the early voting window.
Each voter has a precinct, or designated location, to vote on Election Day based on their residential address – and that is the only place they can vote. For example, a student who lives at Gainesville Place Apartments cannot vote at the Reitz. To find their voting location, they need to go to the Supervisor of Elections website or contact their office.
Students who do not live on campus may vote at precincts around Alachua County. Voters can find their precinct location by inputting their address on the Alachua County Supervisor of Elections’ website.
Students registered in another county may not vote in Alachua County. If they cannot vote in person in the county they are registered for, they may request a mail-in ballot.
Students have until Oct. 24 to request a vote-by-mail, or absentee, ballot from their county. Voter ballots should arrive within two business days of a request. If a ballot does not arrive within a reasonable time, students should contact their local Supervisor of Elections office.
Alachua County absentee ballots can be returned directly to the county’s office at 515 N. Main St., Suite 300 or by mail, according to the county’s Vote-by-Mail FAQ page.
Vote-by-mail ballots cannot be taken to a voting precinct on Nov. 3, Election Day. They should be returned to the county’s office, either by mail or dropped off in-person, before Election Day.
Along with the 2020 presidential race, six state amendments will appear on the Alachua County ballot. They cover topics like changing two words in Florida’s constitution, requiring voter-approved legislation to be passed twice and raising minimum wage.
According to data from the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement, 64.2% of UF students participated in the 2016 presidential election. UF saw an increase of 3.5% from the 2012 election.
Any additional questions about voting by mail or voter information can be sent to votebymail@alachuacounty.us.
