Secretary Detzner Issues Election Readiness Update for Upcoming Presidential Preference Primary on March 15

Tallahassee –

Today, Secretary of State Ken Detzner issued the following statement prior to the Presidential Preference Primary on March 15, 2016:

"Voting is one of our most important rights and Florida’s Presidential Preference Primary is on Tuesday, March 15," said Secretary of State Ken Detzner. "Hundreds of thousands of Floridians have already begun voting for the Presidential Preference Primary. I encourage eligible voters who are not voting absentee (voting by mail) to exercise their right to vote during early voting from March 5-12 or at the polls on Election Day. Some counties may have additional early voting days to choose from. Visit YourVoteFlorida.com or contact your local Supervisor of Elections office for more information."

"GET READY. GET SET. VOTE!" TIPS

ABSENTEE (VOTE BY MAIL) VOTING: Voters are encouraged to make their absentee ballot requests as soon as possible. The deadline for voters to request an absentee ballot (vote by mail ballot) to be mailed is 5 p.m. on Wednesday, March 9. After the deadline, voters can pick up an absentee ballot through Election Day from their respective Supervisor of Elections office. Absentee ballots must be received by the Supervisor of Elections no later than 7 p.m. on Election Day if the voted ballot is to count. Additional information is available for overseas voters on the Division of Elections website.

ABSENTEE BALLOT REQUESTS ON ELECTION DAY:If a voter or designee waits until Election Day to pick up an absentee ballot, the Election Day Absentee Ballot Delivery Affidavit (DS-DE 136 - English PDF/ Español PDF) must also be completed in which the voter affirms that he or she has an emergency that keeps the voter from being able to go to his or her assigned polling place to vote.

EARLY VOTING: Early voting in Florida will be held in all 67 counties from Saturday, March 5 through Saturday, March 12. Some counties may have additional early voting days for voters to choose from. Additional information on early voting days, hours and locations is available on the Division of Elections website. You can also contact your local Supervisor of Electionsoffice.

ID REQUIREMENTS AT THE POLLS:According to the Florida Statutes, at the polls during early voting and on Election Day, voters will be asked to provide a valid photo ID with signature. If the photo ID does not contain a signature, voters will be asked to provide another ID that has a signature. A voter who does not have an acceptable ID can still vote a provisional ballot. The following photo IDs will be accepted:

• Florida driver’s license
• Florida identification card issued by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
• United States passport
• Debit or credit card
• Military identification
• Student identification
• Retirement center identification
• Neighborhood association identification
• Public assistance identification

ELECTION RESULTS & STATISTICS

ELECTION RESULTS: On March 15, 2016, Florida’s election results for the Presidential Preference Primary will be available on the Florida Election Watch website, enight.elections.myflorida.com. Visitors to the site will be able to customize results tracking by contest, county and other categories. Please be aware that while Florida polls close at 7 p.m., Florida has two time zones. Voting will not be completed statewide until 7 p.m. Central/8 p.m. Eastern. Election results will be published on the Florida Election Watch website after 8 p.m. Eastern time.

EARLY VOTING AND ABSENTEE BALLOT STATISTICS: The Division of Elections is providing daily early voting and absentee ballot statistics based on county reports last filed by the supervisor of elections for that county. To access these statistics, click here.

BOOKCLOSING REPORTS: On February 16, 2016, voter registration books closed for the Presidential Preference Primary election. The Division of Elections prepares detailed statistical reports on the number of active registered voters as of the day of bookclosing. The reports are available in Excel and PDF format, and include a breakdown of voter registration by county and additional parameters. To access archived bookclosing reports, click here.

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About the Division of Elections

The Florida Department of State’s Division of Elections supports the Secretary of State, Florida’s Chief Election Officer, in ensuring that Florida has fair and accurate elections. The Division’s three bureaus; the Bureau of Election Records, Bureau of Voter Registration Services, and Bureau of Voting Systems Certification, have several responsibilities in the areas of legal compliance and elections administration to ensure that Florida’s election laws are uniformly interpreted and implemented. The Division also assists local Supervisors of Elections in their duties, and promotes enhanced public awareness and participation in the electoral process. For more information about Florida’s elections, visit dos.myflorida.com/elections/.