Here's what you need to know about voting in the Nov. 2 local elections

WLRN 91.3 FM | By Lance Dixon

Published October 25, 2021 at 12:05 PM EDT

Voters drop off ballots at the Miami-Dade County Elections Supervisor headquarters in Doral on Election Day.

This post has been updated.

There have been other local elections this year in cities ranging from Coral Gables to South Miami but Election Day, for some of our region's biggest cities, is coming up Nov. 2.

We know that many folks will be taking advantage of early voting and voting by mail. With that in mind, you may have a lot of questions. So we want to answer them for you before you head to the polls, mail in your ballot or drop it off to election workers.

Below, we've also put together information on sample ballots for the various races across South Florida.

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OK, with all of that out of the way, here's what you need to know:

Where can I find my sample ballot?

Each supervisor of elections office in South Florida has a landing page where you can check the sample ballot for your area by entering your name, address and date of birth. It's also how you can check if you're in any of the relevant municipalities, areas or congressional districts on this Nov. 2 ballot. You can find them below:

And here's a general sample ballot for each race/question you may see on your ballot in South Florida:

Can I drop my ballot off at an early voting location before Election Day?

Yep, you can do that. Just find the vote-by-mail box at your local early voting precinct and drop it off with a staffer there. Also, be sure to have your ID handy.

Early voting has started across South Florida, with some variation on scheduling and end dates. Here's a look at some of the early voting locations and schedules in our region:

What about on Election Day?

Yes, but there’s one wrinkle — you can’t drop it off at a polling precinct. It has to be at one of your local Supervisor of Elections offices.

Here's where you can drop them off on Nov. 2:

Broward
- Elections headquarters: 115 S. Andrews Ave., Room 102 in Fort Lauderdale.
Miami-Dade
- Election headquarters: 2700 NW 87th Ave. in Doral
Monroe
- 10015 Overseas Hwy. in Marathon
Palm Beach
- Main office: 240 South Military Trail in West Palm Beach
- North County branch office: 3188 PGA Blvd. Rm. #2401 in Palm Beach Gardens
- South County branch office: 345 South Congress Avenue Rm. #103 in Delray Beach
- West County branch office: 2976 State Road #15, Second Floor in Belle Glade

If I already requested a ballot can I decide to not use it?

Yes. You can still decide you want to vote in person at the last minute.

And if you decide to change your mind, make sure you bring your mail ballot with you when you vote so the elections department can confirm that you didn't send it in and cancel your mail ballot.

Additionally, you can't bring in your filled-out ballot as a guide for the in-person voting process. If you want a reference point, you can either print or bring in a filled-out sample ballot or pull up a sample ballot on your phone.

And how do I track the status of my mail ballot?

You can do that through your county's supervisor of elections website by entering your voter information at the following links:

What if there’s an issue with my ballot?

The most common issue is usually that someone forgot to include a signature on their mail ballot or that their signature doesn’t match the one the supervisor of elections has on file.

If you’re not sure about your signature or if you haven’t voted by mail in awhile, or ever, you can request an update to your signature just to make sure it matches up with your current autograph. Here’s the form.

And if an issue still arises, don’t worry, you can fix or “cure” those issues with your ballot. You have until the second day after the election by 5 p.m. — so Nov. 4 in the case of this upcoming election — to submit an affidavit to fix your ballot issues.

Your local elections department should reach out to you via phone, email or regular mail to let you know if there’s been an issue, and they’ll also send you an affidavit request form.

But if you end up in that situation and don’t wanna chance it, here are the affidavit request forms for each county:

OK, but what if I move between when I got my mail-in ballot and Election Day? Can I still drop my ballot off if my address isn’t updated?

Yes, but remember, you can only drop it off at a polling place during early voting. If you do it on Election Day, it has to be at an elections office. And if you want to switch your ballot to your new address, see the question above.

Have any other questions about voter registration, voting by mail, or about the election in general? Email us at talktous@wlrnnews.org.