Early voting under way across county
Members of the Republican Party in Lee County should be prepared to cast their ballots in the Presidential Preference Primary Election, as the early voting period began Saturday.
From March 9-16, each day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., registered Republican voters in Lee County can cast their ballot at 12 different sites for who they’d like to see represent their party ahead of the March 19 primary date.
Florida’s Presidential Preference Primary is a closed primary election that allows voters to vote for the candidate they want to see represent their party in the November presidential election.
“We provide all voters with three ways to vote,” said Lee County Supervisor of Elections Tommy Doyle via email. “Early Voting, Vote-by-Mail, and Election Day. One of the great benefits of Early Voting is that it helps to alleviate Election Day lines.
“It’s also important for voters to keep Early Voting or voting by mail as an option. Life circumstances can occur where the voter might not be able to go to the polls on Election Day.”
This year, only voters registered with the Republican Party will be eligible to vote in the March 19 election.
The Florida Democratic Party nominated Joseph R. Biden, Jr., as its sole candidate, and no other contests are on the ballot. Therefore, voters registered with the Democratic Party, a minor political party, or no party affiliation will not have a ballot in this election.
Doyle said the office has been working hard in readiness for another election cycle.
“We’ve been preparing for the upcoming elections for over a year,” Doyle said. “Part of this includes running multiple tests on our voting systems to ensure accuracy and that everything is in good working condition.
“Currently, we are active with poll worker training and have approximately 2,500 poll workers lined up to work this year’s elections.”
There are even extra precautions being put in place to ensure votes are tallied accurately.
“This year, we are implementing another layer to our checks and balances with the introduction of the independent post-election auditing system, Clear Audit,” Doyle said. “This system is certified by the state of Florida and allows us to scan 100% of the ballots cast in an election to ensure the accuracy of our tabulation system.”
Voters will find new voting equipment at the polls, as the office recently upgraded its tabulators to the latest model from ES&S, to the DS300.
Requests for a vote-by-mail ballot can be made for all elections through 2024. Doyle said he recommends requesting a ballot as an insurance policy.
“A voter can still choose to vote in person, even if they have requested a vote-by-mail ballot,” he said.
Florida law requires voters to provide picture and signature identification when voting in person. Picture identification may not be expired.
Early Voting sites for the PPP include:
– Cape Coral Elections Office: 1039 S.E. 9th Ave., Cape Coral
– Cape Coral Lee County Library: 921 S.W. 39th Terrace, Cape Coral
– Northwest Regional Library: 519 Chiquita Blvd., N., Cape Coral
– North Fort Myers Recreation Center: 2000 N. Recreation Parkway, North Fort Myers
– Lee County Elections Center: 13180 S. Cleveland Ave., Fort Myers
– Lakes Regional Library: 15290 Bass Road, Fort Myers
– Housing Authority of the City of Fort Myers: 4224 Renaissance Preserve Way, Fort Myers
– Fort Myers Regional Library: 1651 Lee St., Fort Myers
– Estero Recreation Center: 9200 Corkscrew Palms Blvd., Estero
– East County Regional Library: 881 Gunnery Road N., Lehigh Acres
– Bonita Springs Elections Office: 25987 S. Tamiami Trail, #105, Bonita Springs
– Lehigh Acres Elections Office: 600 Homestead Road, S. #9, Lehigh Acres
For more information, visit www.lee.vote.
To reach CJ HADDAD / cjhaddad@breezenewspapers.com, please email