Lines shouldn’t be long as voters wait to cast their ballots for state governor, local representatives and measures including upping conservation funding and legalizing medical marijuana today.
Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., but Supervisor of County Elections Pam Carpenter said voters can still cast their ballots at their designated precinct after 7 p.m. today as long as they were in line when polls initially closed.
Carpenter said nearly 18,000 residents cast early ballots this year, which should keep election-day polling lines short.
About the same amount of people also sent in absentee ballots, which Carpenter said will be collected until 7 p.m. today, the same time polls close.
The number of early and absentee votes this year saw a significant increase compared to the number Carpenter said Alachua County received in 2010.
“More and more people seem to be taking advantage of the flexibility that the early voting process has offered them,” she said.
In order to vote, Florida requires people carry a signed picture ID to the polls. Voters can use their driver’s license, Florida ID card, student ID card or another government-issued form of identification, she said. Voters can also use two different IDs – one photo, one signature – in order to meet the requirements.
If someone does not have the proper identification, Carpenter said people can cast a provisional ballot on election night, which she said is similar to an absentee ballot.
Those ballots are then turned over to the canvassing board, which verifies that voter is registered, hasn’t already voted in the current election and hasn’t changed addresses.
All voting sites in Alachua County accommodate those with disabilities and follow the Americans with Disabilities Act guidelines, Carpenter said.
UF English sophomore Hannah Yoder said she has never voted before. The 19-year-old doesn’t have class Tuesday and plans to cast her ballot around 1:30 p.m.
“This is going to be my first time voting in any election, so I think it’s exciting and the right thing to do,” Yoder said.
Carpenter said poll lines will be busiest early in the morning, during lunch hour and in the evening when most people are getting out of work.
“People should prepare to see some small lines,” she said, “but given the fact that so many people have voted by mail or voted early, I anticipate steady activity.”
