JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Ahead of Election Day, hundreds of thousands of ballots across the state of Florida have yet to be returned. If you fall in that category, it's not too late to make your ballot count.
Data from the Florida Secretary of State's elections division shows 1.3 million mail-in ballots that were provided but not returned, as of around 8:30 a.m. Monday. That's around 22 percent of the total number of mail-in ballots requested statewide.
Of those ballots, 572,785 were registered Democrats, 424,785 were registered Republicans and 335,580 were no party affiliation.
In Duval County, 135,537 mail-in ballots out of a total of 185,746 requested, leaving a gap of 50,209 as of Monday evening.
"That's simply too many," said Patti Brigham, President of the League of Women Voters Florida. "We are very disappointed in the outstanding ballot count in Duval County."
Brigham said her group and others have criticized Duval County's Supervisor of Elections office, alleging not enough was done to educate voters about mail-in ballots.
"We want everyone who is eligible to vote, to vote," she said. "Your vote is the most powerful tool you have to exercise how you believe your state, our communities, our country should be governed."
At this point, it is too late to mail a ballot. In Florida, ballots must be received by the local supervisor of elections office before polls close at 7 p.m. Tuesday.
If you have an outstanding vote-by-mail ballot, there are two options:
- You can take your ballot to the drop box at the local supervisor of elections office (make sure it is signed).
- You can opt to vote in-person. If possible, bring your mail-in ballot to surrender at the polling place.
Dropping off a mail-in ballot at a polling place is no longer an option, meaning you must do so at the county supervisor's office.
You can find your local supervisor of elections office by clicking here.