ELECTION 2020: Voting Is Underway

Daytona Beach, FL – The beginning of Election Day is off to a rather slow start as voting gets underway nationwide this cool November morning. In fact, the polls were anything but crowded in the morning; some voters were seen going in and out of polling places within a few minutes. Part of that reason could be that over 9 million of Florida’s 14 million registered voters have already made their picks before election day, with 4.7 million utilizing absentee ballots as the other 4.3 million chose to vote early, leaving about 5 million left who supposedly haven’t voted. If there is anything to infer from election data so far, it’s that Democrats are still most likely going to outnumber Republicans when it comes to voting in person today. According to data from the Florida Division of Elections, over 3.5 million of the state’s 5.2 million registered Democrats have already voted—be it in person or through mail-in ballots—meaning almost 1.7 million have yet to vote. Meanwhile, Republican numbers were a tad lower regarding early voting, as a little over 3.4 million Republicans voted early out of the 5 million registered GOP voters in the state. Almost 1.6 million have yet to vote. Regardless of who is showing up at the polls, this election will no doubt prove be a contentious one—especially since some are expecting the results to divide the dinner table at Thanksgiving for some families.  Tips & Help For Voters If you planned to vote by mail and you haven’t returned your signed and completed ballot, you still have time to do so. Mail-in ballots can be dropped off at your local elections office, as long as the polls are open (polls close at 7 p.m.). It is additionally important to note that you may not return your mail-in ballot to a regular polling place, as they MUST be returned to your local department of elections—that goes for both Volusia and Flagler. Volusia County Supervisor of Elections Office: 1750 S. Woodland Blvd., DeLand, FL 32720 Flagler County Supervisor of Elections Office: 1769 E. Moody Boulevard, Building 2, Suite 101Bunnell, FL 32110 Some may also be worried about voter intimidation, as places like Flagler County have already experienced some instances even before the election. Anyone who experiences voter intimidation should get in contact with their local department of elections. Additionally, organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) have hotlines set up for those who need help with voting, those numbers can be found below. English: 1-866-OUR-VOTE / 1-866-687-8683 Spanish: 1-888-VE-Y-VOTA / 1-888-839-8682 Arabic: 1-844-YALLA-US / 1-844-925-5287 Bengali, Cantonese, Hindi, Urdu, Korean, Mandarin, Tagalog, or Vietnamese: 1-888-274-8683 Other helpful links: Volusia County Voting Precinct Locator Flagler County Voting Precinct List Be sure to join News Daytona Beach tonight as the results roll in. You can find live up-to-date coverage of the election through our Live Poll Tracker. And be sure to join us at FM 93.5 and AM 1150 WNDB at 7 p.m. as Marc Bernier, Mike Scudiero and former Holly Hill Mayor Roland Via discuss the local elections, as they happen.