Results 2020: Polls open as Election Day arrives in Florida - WKMG News 6 & ClickOrlando

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – It’s Election Day in Florida.

Polls opened at 7 a.m. Tuesday for Florida’s primary election and they won’t close until 7 p.m. local time.

Some precinct locations had to be moved due to concerns over the coronavirus, one of several measures taken to ensure voters are safe when they cast their ballots.

Orange County Supervisor of Elections Bill Cowles said poll workers are prepared and will follow safety protocols.

“Everything is more spaced out. They’re definitely following the CDC guidelines, for sure,” a local voter told News 6.

[PREPARE: 2020 Voter Guide]

“We’ve gotten a lot of advice from the CDC, (and) I’m just talking amongst other counties and comparing what each other is doing,” Cowles said.

Cowles said masks will be required, with workers stocking hand sanitizer and PPE. Voters will use tissues when signing their names to prevent repeated touching and voters will be encouraged to bring their own pens.

Katie Bennett, of Lake Nona, said she’s not only worried about her safety but for her son’s as well.

“My biggest concern is that my son is only one-year-old so he can’t wear a mask yet,” Bennett said. “The people that are here volunteering are doing an amazing job and I think if it’s your only option, then you should definitely do it.”

[RELATED: Ballot drop off boxes ‘a huge hit’ | RESULTS 2020: Live election returns (starting at 7 p.m.)]

Key elections in Orange County include races for sheriff, as John Mina seeks re-election against four other Democrats, and the Orange-Osceola County state attorney, an office currently held by Aramis Ayala, who is not seeking re-election.

Florida is a closed primary state, meaning voters can only cast ballots for candidates running for the party in which they are registered.

Mail-in voting surges in Sunshine State

Catharine Skipp voted by mail for the first time ahead of Florida’s primary on Tuesday because she has largely confined herself to home during the coronavirus pandemic. She also had another new experience: Her ballot was challenged.

The 66-year-old Democrat and native Floridian lives in Miami-Dade County, the area hardest hit by the virus. She said she registered to vote the first chance she could and has voted in every election since, usually being in line when polls open on Election Day.

“I always had a thing for being there at 7 o'clock when the doors open,” Skipp said. “It was sort of nice to just sit at my desk."

The pandemic has clearly inspired many to vote by mail. As of Monday, more than 2.1 million people had cast mail-in ballots with more still coming in. That compares to fewer than 1.3 million in the 2016 primary. Unlike 2016, when there were primaries for U.S. Senate that helped drive up turnout, there are no statewide races on the August 2020 ballot.

Mail-in ballots have to be received by 7 p.m. Tuesday in order to be counted. For voters who obtained vote-by-mail ballots but ran out of time — or in some counties, stamps — to send them by mail, Florida's secretary of state recommended hand-delivering them to secure drop boxes at each county's elections offices.

While President Donald Trump has raised questions about the potential for fraud in voting by mail, he later walked back his comments and said Florida’s system is secure.

Skipp also praised the system, even after elections officials questioned the signature on her ballot. She was given notice that her signature was challenged and given plenty of time to correct it.

“I was impressed. It felt very secure. Very on top of it,” she said. “They questioned my signature in an efficient way. And then I got an email that they had received my cure affidavit and everything was cool.”

Democrats now have the edge in Florida, but independents can, as usual, make all the difference. As of June 30, Florida had nearly 4.9 million active Republican voters and more than 5.1 million active Democratic voters.

The state has nearly 3.8 million voters who either are not registered with a party or are registered with a minor party. While they can’t vote in legislative or congressional primaries, they can vote in nonpartisan local races.

Florida will elect at least two new members of Congress this year, and the Republican primaries in two districts will likely decide who they will be.

Republican U.S. Reps. Ted Yoho and Francis Rooney are leaving office in heavily GOP districts. There are 10 Republican candidates seeking to replace Yoho in District 3, which stretches from Ocala to just south of Jacksonville.

Rooney is in District 19, where nine Republicans are on the ballot, including state Reps. Dane Eagle and Byron Donalds. The district includes Naples and Fort Myers in southwest Florida. Businessman Casey Askar has used at least $3 million of his own money on the race, while physician Bill Figlesthaler has invested more than $2 million of his own funds.

Incumbent Republican Rep. Ross Spano, a first-term congressman facing ethics investigations over alleged campaign finance violations, has a primary challenge from Lakeland City Commissioner Scott Franklin. The district just east of Tampa leans Republican, and if Spano survives the primary, Democrats will target him in November. Three Democrats are seeking the seat.

The House Ethics Committee was looking into allegations that Spano borrowed more than $100,000 from two friends and then loaned the money to his campaign. But it paused the review when the U.S. Department of Justice also began investigating it. Spano has denied any wrongdoing.

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Results 2020: Polls open as Election Day arrives in Florida - WKMG News 6 & ClickOrlando
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