If you live in Florida and were planning to vote by mail in the November 3 election, check the clock. Today, October 22, at 5 p.m., the deadline closes to request that a ballot be mailed to you. After that hour, only one path remains: voting in person.
And you’re not alone. Not even in the physical line.
As of the close of this Wednesday, October 21, more than 16.3 million Americans had already voted early, according to the University of Florida’s Election Lab count, which compiles each state’s official data going back to 2008. Of those ballots, 10.15 million arrived by mail and 6.24 million were cast in person.
In the states that record the party affiliation of who votes, 46.7% of those early ballots belong to registered Democrats, 29.6% to Republicans, and 23.8% to unaffiliated voters or other parties. Watch out for this: affiliation is not the vote. It only says who got to the polls first, not who they marked the ballot for.
Maryland opens today; Florida, this Saturday
Early in-person voting also starts today in Maryland: October 22 through 29, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., every day, including Saturday and Sunday. And there’s a detail worth its weight in gold if you missed registration: Maryland allows same-day registration during early voting and on Election Day. Show up with a document proving your address — a license, a state ID, a utility bill — and vote. If you prefer mail in Maryland, request the ballot by October 27.
In Florida, the mandatory in-person early voting period runs Saturday, October 24 through Saturday, October 31, although more than 30 counties jumped ahead and started Monday the 19th, with 11 more joining today. State law requires that eight-day minimum, and each county may offer up to six additional days. If you’re in Miami-Dade, Broward or Orlando, check your Supervisor of Elections page: locations and hours change by county.
New York and the other states with the most Hispanics
New York opens October 24 and closes November 1. That same Saturday the 24th is the last day to register and to request a mail ballot: the Board of Elections calls it “Golden Day,” because you register and vote on the same day.
Texas has been voting since Monday the 19th and continues through October 30. In Georgia (October 13–30) and North Carolina (October 15–31) the lines are moving too. California votes from October 5 through November 2 and, like Colorado, mails a ballot automatically to every registered voter.
Altogether, 47 states plus Washington, D.C. let you vote in person before Election Day with no excuse needed. Only Alabama, Mississippi and New Hampshire require a documented reason.
What to do today, in order
1. Check your registration. Go to vote.gov and confirm you appear as an active voter at your current address. If you moved this year, this step is not optional.
2. If you live in Florida and want to vote by mail, request the ballot today before 5 p.m. Do it with your county’s Supervisor of Elections. After today, the mail route closes.
3. If you live in Maryland, you can start today. Find your early voting center at vote.md.gov/vote2026: any center in your county works, not necessarily the closest to home.
4. If you’re voting for the first time as a naturalized citizen, bring photo ID. Every state has its own rules, and a valid ID saves you arguments in line.
A timely reminder: this week a federal judge blocked the DHS’s door-to-door visits targeting suspected noncitizen voters through Election Day, precisely to prevent intimidation at the polls. And Democrats sued the administration to stop threats against election officials. If you’re going to vote, those two stories explain what protections you have. You can follow all of Actual USA’s election coverage.
The November 3 election decides the House of Representatives and part of the Senate. With more than 16 million ballots already cast, the election — for all practical purposes — has already started. The question is no longer whether you’ll vote, but when.
Official sources
- Daily early-vote tracker with University of Florida Election Lab data (as of October 21, 8:20 p.m. ET): https://lperson.github.io/pages/EARLY_VOTE_DAILY.html
- Florida Division of Elections — 2026 voter guide (mandatory early voting period: October 24–31): http://Dos.Myflorida.Com/media/711211/voterregvotingguide-2026-election-cycle_eng-updated-20260720.pdf
- New York State Board of Elections — early voting October 24 through November 1: http://elections.ny.gov/early-voting
- Maryland State Board of Elections — early voting October 22–29: https://vote.md.gov/vote2026
- New York Attorney General — general election key dates: https://ag.ny.gov/election-key-dates
Comentarios