This story is a part of a sequence of state-by-state previews of the 2024 election.
As soon as thought-about a pivotal swing state in presidential elections, Florida has proved reliably Republican lately. A Democrat hasn’t gained the state’s Electoral Faculty votes since 2012, when former President Barack Obama succeeded with a margin of lower than one proportion level.
Donald Trump has gained Florida in each of his campaigns and the state’s 30 electoral votes are a cornerstone of his path to high Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and return to the White Home.
Trump gained the state by a single level in 2016 and by three factors in 2020. Republicans appeared to additional tighten their grip on the state in 2022, when Gov. Ron DeSantis and Sen. Marco Rubio comfortably gained reelection.
Florida voters may also select on Election Day whether or not Republican Rick Scott ought to have one other time period within the U.S. Senate. Scott, a former governor of Florida, faces a problem from Democrat Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, who represented Florida within the U.S. Home however misplaced her reelection bid in 2020.
Additional down the poll are a handful of proposed amendments to Florida’s structure. Modification 4 would enshrine abortion rights within the state, whereas Modification 3 would legalize the leisure use of marijuana.
Registered Democrats had outnumbered registered Republicans in Florida for at the very least 50 years courting again to the early Nineteen Seventies. Republicans overtook Democrats in registration after the 2020 election, and that benefit grew to a lead of about 1 million voters as of August.
Election analysts will likely be intently watching turnout in Florida, which was pummeled by hurricanes Helene and Milton within the run-up to Election Day.
The AP doesn’t make projections and can declare a winner solely when it has decided there isn’t a situation that will enable the trailing candidates to shut the hole. If a race has not been known as, the AP will proceed to cowl any newsworthy developments, equivalent to candidate concessions or declarations of victory. In doing so, the AP will clarify that it has not but declared a winner and clarify why.
Right here’s a have a look at what to anticipate within the 2024 election in Florida:
Election Day
Nov. 5.
Ballot closing time
7 p.m. and eight p.m. ET. Florida covers two time zones, so a lot of the state will begin reporting outcomes whereas some voters within the panhandle are casting ballots till 8 p.m. ET.
Presidential electoral votes
30 awarded to statewide winner.
Key races and candidates
President: Harris (D) vs. Trump (R) vs. Claudia De la Cruz ( Socialism and Liberation) vs. Chase Oliver (Libertarian) vs. Peter Sonski (American Solidarity) vs. Jill Stein (Inexperienced) vs. Randall Terry (Structure).
U.S. Senate: Scott (R) vs. Mucarsel-Powell (D) and three others.
Poll measures: Modification 3 (legalize marijuana) and Modification 4 (proper to abortion).
Different races of curiosity
U.S. Home, state Senate, state Home, state lawyer, public defender, sheriff and different poll measures.
Previous presidential outcomes
2020: Trump (R) 51%, Biden (D) 48%, AP race name: Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020, 12:35 a.m. ET.
Voter registration and turnout
Registered voters: 13,845,913 (as of Sept. 30, 2024). About 32% Democrats, 39% Republicans, and 26% unaffiliated.
Voter turnout in Nov. 2020: 77% of registered voters.
Pre-Election Day voting
Votes solid earlier than Election Day 2020: about 83% of the full vote.
Votes solid earlier than Election Day 2022: about 65% of the full vote.
Votes solid earlier than Election Day 2024: See AP Advance Vote tracker.
How lengthy does vote-counting take?
First votes reported, Nov. 3, 2020: 7:04 p.m. ET.
By midnight ET: about 99% of complete votes solid had been reported.
