HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — A day after reporting record turnout on the first day of early voting, Hillsborough County said it broke another record – this one for vote-by-mail ballots.
Supervisor of Elections Craig Latimer said Tuesday afternoon that the county has already received more mail-in ballots than were cast in the 2016 presidential election.
As of about 1:15 p.m. Tuesday, 201,611 vote by mail ballots have been turned in in Hillsborough County, Latimer's office reported.
On Monday, the first day of early voting in most Tampa Bay area counties, Latimer said 24,063 voters came to the polls, surpassing the number who voted on the first day during the 2016 election.
"We've really got some enthused voters out there, I'll tell you what," Latimer said Monday. "They are coming out to vote...and not surprising; we're the fourth largest county in the state, with over 934,000 registered voters.
Across the bay, Pinellas County also had a record-breaking first day of early voting, with 8,407 ballots cast. That's an increase of 3,968 votes compared to the first day of early voting during the 2016 election.
For the 2020 general election, all counties in Florida have in-person voting from Oct. 24-31. Local supervisors of elections may offer additional dates. In most Tampa Bay area counties, early voting began Oct. 19.
Across the state, more than 2.6 million mail ballots have been returned, and more than 366,000 people have voted early, according to Florida Division of Elections data.
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