Anyone who wants to vote by mail in the March 10 city, town and village elections in Palm Beach and Broward counties needs to act right away.
The deadline to request a mail ballot is Thursday, Feb. 26.
State law sets a strict deadline of 5 p.m. for vote-by-mail ballot requests to be at the county elections office. That includes online applications. Postmarks for mailed applications don’t count.
People can request mail ballots online.
Residents of two cities, towns and villages in Broward and 19 in Palm Beach County are electing local officials, deciding on referendums, or both. Some communities will pick successors to departing mayors who have been in office for years.
There are three key factors voters may not be aware of and need to know:
— People who want to vote by mail in the March municipal elections need to make new requests if they haven’t done so since the 2024 presidential election. Under state law, all requests for vote-by-mail ballots made prior to the 2024 presidential elections have been voided.
— There is no in-person early voting for the city, town and village elections.
— Voters who have renewed or replaced a Florida driver’s license or state ID may need to update their license or ID number with the county supervisor of elections office so the request for a mail ballot can be processed.
Who can vote
Most Broward communities have their local elections in November. Palm Beach County municipalities generally use the uniform March election day.
Broward voting: Lauderhill and Pembroke Pines. Candidates in four other places were unopposed, so elections won’t be held.
Palm Beach County voting: Boynton Beach, Belle Glade, Boca Raton, Delray Beach, Greenacres, Gulf Stream, Hypoluxo, Juno Beach, Jupiter Inlet Colony, Lake Park, Lake Worth Beach, Loxahatchee Groves, Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Palm Beach Shores, Royal Palm Beach, South Palm Beach, Wellington, and West Palm Beach.
Only people who are registered to vote in municipalities are eligible to participate. Voters whose address lists a city, yet reside in an unincorporated area, are not eligible to vote in the municipal election.
Returning mail ballots
People should return their mail ballots well before Election Day, March 10.
Florida law features a strict deadline for returning mail ballots. They must be back at the county elections office by 7 p.m. on Election Day. Postmarks don’t count.
Elections officials routinely warn against waiting too long to return ballots and risking a Postal Service delay. Every election there are ballots that arrive late and can’t be counted under Florida law. In close elections there often have been enough uncounted ballots to potentially change the results.
People can also return their mail ballots at drop boxes at supervisors of elections offices in their home counties. Details about the hours and locations are available at the county elections office websites.
State law no longer uses the term “drop boxes” for ballots. Florida changed the name to “secure ballot intake stations” after Republican activists claimed without evidence that they weren’t sufficiently secure and could lead to fraud.
Someone who requests and receives a mail ballot is not required to use it. Voters can still vote in their neighborhood polling stations on Election Day, March 10. Safeguards are in place to prevent someone from voting more than once.
Make it count
To make sure your vote counts, mark the ballot exactly the way the instructions specify. If you don’t, it might not scan correctly.
If someone votes for more than one candidate in a race (unless it’s a contest in which people are supposed to pick more than one candidate), the vote won’t count. People can skip a race and leave it blank.
Elections canvassing boards in each county end up reviewing unusual ballot markings and are left to decipher voter intent. If they’re unable to figure it out, the vote isn’t counted.
Election Day
Neighborhood polling places are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day, March 10.
Anyone who is in line at 7 p.m. is allowed to vote.
People must vote in their assigned polling place on Election Day.
Someone must have a current, valid photo ID with a signature. The most common are Florida driver’s licenses or state ID cards.
Many other forms of ID, including passports, are accepted. If the photo ID doesn’t have a voter’s signature, the person will have to show another ID with a signature.
Dates & deadlines
Request mail ballot: 5 p.m. Feb. 26.
In-person early voting: Not available for March local elections.
Return mail ballots: 7 p.m. March 10. Postmarks don’t count.
Election Day: March 10. Neighborhood polling stations are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Information
People can check to see if they’re registered to vote, request mail ballots and check their status, and find locations of polling places online and by phone.
Broward County: www.browardvotes.gov, 954-357-8683.
Palm Beach County: www.votepalmbeach.gov, 561-656-6200.