More than 1.9 million Floridians cast ballots ahead of primary

SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) - More than 1.9 million Floridians have already cast ballots for tomorrow’s primary election, according to the State Division of Elections.

Nearly 1.1 million vote-by-mail ballots have been returned to county election offices, and more than 818,000 people went to early voting locations.

Registered Republicans have accounted for 45.5% of the ballots cast already, while registered Democrats were at 42.1%.

The biggest race in the state is the Republican gubernatorial contest, which features U.S. Representative Byron Donalds, Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins and former State House Speaker Paul Renner.

The winner of this race will face the winner of the Democratic primary, which includes former Congressman David Jolly and current State Representative Dottie Joseph.

University of Central Florida political science professor Aubrey Jewett does not expect any surprises tomorrow night.

“Right now, it looks like, you know, if polling and money is in any indication for the governor’s race, it’s going to be David Jolly versus Byron Donalds,” Jewett said.

As of Sunday morning, nearly 14.2% of all registered voters in the state had already cast their ballots. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. tomorrow.

Early voting slightly up in Sarasota, Manatee counties ahead of primary

The state’s two gubernatorial frontrunners made a final push to reach local voters Sunday.

U.S. Representative Byron Donalds made a campaign stop in Sarasota. Donalds held a rally at Gold Coast Eagle Distributing while holding a substantial lead in public voting. The Trump-backed candidate spoke on eliminating property taxes, environmental conservation and border security.

Democratic frontrunner David Jolly spent Sunday campaigning in Tampa at an early voting location. The former congressman spoke with voters casting their ballots at the Jan Platt Library.

ABC7 spoke with local voters about some of the policy issues they are most concerned about this election cycle.

“The economy, the future of our country, specifically our state, freedom,” one voter said.

“Seeing that I have 15 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren, I’m very interested in the school board,” another voter said.

Voters planning to cast ballots on Election Day tomorrow must vote at their assigned polling place and bring a valid, current photo ID with a signature.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. Information on finding a polling location can be found at mysuncoast.com.