You can’t vote just anywhere on Election Day. Tips for voting on Tuesday
If you are one of those people who will only vote on Election Day, you may be wondering what to expect.
Will there be hours-long lines? Will it be safe to vote? Do I have to wear a mask?
The simple answers: No, yes and yes.
Elections officials say with so many people voting by mail or voting early, they don’t expect a huge turnout on Tuesday. There’s a lot at stake in this election, which not only includes the presidential race, but also includes state and local races as well.
Miami-Dade has 859 precincts where voters can cast their vote on Tuesday (although you have to vote in your assigned precinct — more on that later.)
“We don’t expect to see the lines we are seeing in early voting, but give yourself enough time for waiting to vote and actually voting,” said Roberto Rodriguez, a spokesman for Miami-Dade Supervisor of Elections Office.
By Friday, more than 850,000 people in Miami-Dade had cast ballots out of about 1.5 million registered voters. In Broward more than 700,000 had cast ballots out of about 1.2 million registered voters, according to state data. In Monroe, more than 33,000 out of about 57,000 registered voters have cast ballots. In Palm Beach, more than 530,000 votes have been cast out of about 1 million registered voters.
Steve Vancore, a spokesman for the Broward Supervisor of Elections Office, said the 577 precincts in the county are ready for Election Day. He said they expect about the same turnout as a low-turnout primary election on Tuesday.
“There are going to be very few lines, very few problems and very few issues with social distancing,” he said.
Rodriguez said the department expects about a 22 percent turnout.
“There’s people that know they have other options to vote, but want to be part of the excitement of Election Day,” Rodriguez said.
Here’s an Election Day survival guide:
What should I bring to the polls?
Come prepared as if you may have to brave South Florida weather. And let’s face it — you never know. So you may want to wear sunscreen and hat and stow an umbrella in your car or a bag just in case.
Bringing a water bottle is a good idea. For those who don’t like standing for long periods of time, a chair is recommended.
Once you get inside, you’ll want to have your driver’s license ready to present to a poll worker. (If you don’t have a driver’s license, bring your passport or a valid photo ID with your signature, such as an ID card issued by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles or an employee ID card issued by the federal government, the state of Florida or any county or municipality.)
And you should be wearing a mask that covers your mouth and nose, although both Miami and Broward say they will have some just in case. You can bring your own pen — though Broward is providing each person with a pen they can take home. You can also bring your own hand sanitizer.
“Wear a mask, feel free to use all the hand sanitizer we have and try to vote on off hours,” Vancore said.
Off hours would be after 9 a.m., avoiding the noon-1 p.m. lunch hour and voting before the 5 p.m. evening rush. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day.
Another tip: You may want to bring a cheat sheet. In some cases, the ballot may be long because of charter amendments and other issues. By doing your research and getting a sample ballot in advance, you will cut the amount of time you have to be in the polling place.
You can get a customized sample ballot on Miami-Dade’s website www.miamidade.gov/global/elections/home.page or on Broward’s www.browardsoe.org. To get a sample ballot in Monroe visit www.keys-elections.org. In Palm Beach, a sample ballot can be found at www.pbcelections.org.
“You don’t want the first time that you are seeing the questions to be when you are already in the booth,” Rodriguez said.
Where do I go to vote?
This is important. Very important. You can not vote wherever you want on Election Day like you can during the two-week early-voting period.
Voters must go to their assigned precinct, which is determined by a person’s address. The information is on your voter registration card.
South Florida election officials suggest that voters check their precinct ahead of time, just to make sure it hasn’t changed.
Voters can check their precinct by visiting Miami-Dade or Broward’s election websites or by calling Miami-Dade at 305-499-VOTE (8683) or Broward at 954-357-7050. Monroe County has a precinct finder on its website, as does Palm Beach.
If there is any question about your identity, you may be given a provisional ballot until the information can be verified.
Will it be safe?
South Florida elections offices are following Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Florida Department of Health guidelines including social distancing markers, mask requirements and hand sanitizer stations.
“We are protecting voters at all 859 precincts,” Rodriguez said.
Both Miami-Dade and Broward said they had very few issues during the August primary and are continuing to abide by the same rules.
Voters will not be allowed inside precincts without a mask. You can also expect poll workers to make you space out in line so that you are 6 feet apart.
Inside, people will also be spaced out, so that no one will be close to anyone else.
What can’t I do while in the polling place?
You can wear a MAGA hat or a Biden mask in the polling place, but don’t try to campaign or convince someone else to vote for a particular candidate.
You also can’t sell any election-related merchandise inside.
Another tip: You may want to keep your cellphone on silent inside, because talking on the phone is not advised. In fact, the clerk may tell you to hang up. You can use your phone to help you vote, though.
And don’t even think about taking a photo of the polling place or of you with someone else inside. That’s a strict no-no because of privacy rules. You can take a ballot selfie though and post it online.
Can I still turn in my vote-by-mail ballot on Election Day?
Yes, but don’t show up at your assigned precinct with it. You will not be able to turn it in.
You can, however, go to your precinct, ask a poll worker to “spoil” or discard your vote-by-mail ballot and vote in person.
But if that’s not what you want to do, you must bring your mail-in ballot to one of four locations in Miami-Dade and in Broward, one of two locations. Remember the polls are open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m.
The locations in Miami-Dade where you can drop off your mail-in ballot are:
▪ Elections Department Main Office, 2700 NW 87th Ave.;
▪ Stephen P. Clark Center, 111 NW First St. in the lobby area;
▪ North Dade Regional Library, 2455 NW 183rd St.
▪ South Dade Regional Library, 10750 SW 211th St.
In Broward the locations are: the rear entrance of Lauderhill Mall Voting Equipment Center, 1501 NW 40th Ave., and one at the Brickell Avenue entrance to the Supervisor of Elections Office at 115 S. Andrews Ave.
In Monroe, the locations are: Supervisor of Elections Office, 530 Whitehead St #101 in Key West; Supervisor of Elections Office, 10015 Overseas Highway in Marathon, or Supervisor of Elections Office, 102050 Overseas Highway #137 in Key Largo.
For Palm Beach, visit www.pbcelections.org/Voters/Vote-By-Mail.
I am running late, will I still be able to vote?
Polls close at 7 p.m. sharp.
But according to Florida law if you are in line by 7 p.m., then they must allow you to vote. There have been cases in South Florida where voters cast their ballot after midnight, and it was counted because they were in line before 7 p.m. (the lines were very long in some cases).
Officials in both counties suggest that voters don’t cut it that close.
