The Palm Beach Post is bringing you live coverage of Elections 2022 in Palm Beach County. Check back for results, turnout and more.
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► Have questions about voting? We’ve put together a guide to the general election.
► Florida general election 2022 previews:Races and candidates on Palm Beach County voters’ ballots
It’s Election Day! Polls open at 7 a.m.
When do polls open and close on Election Day? Polling locations in Florida are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Voters in line by 7 p.m. will be allowed to cast their ballot.
Short lines at River Bridge polling place in Greenacres
At River Bridge, a gated community in Greenacres, residents entered the neighborhood activity center and emerged fewer than 10 minutes later with an “I Voted” sticker.
Among them was 22-year-old Nick Lobdell. As an urban design student at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, he said the $200 million affordable housing bond caught his attention.
And as a soon-to-be graduate who plans on leaving his family home, Lobdell said he worries about the ability to rent or buy a place of his own after college.
“Cost of living in Florida is pretty dramatic,” said Lobdell, who voted in favor of the bond issue.
— Giuseppe Sabella
Donald Trump votes for DeSantis in Palm Beach County
Former President Donald Trump went to the polls Tuesday, casting a ballot he acknowledged included a vote for Gov. Ron DeSantis, whom he’s poked a bit in the past few days leading up to the midterm elections.
Trump voted at the Morton and Barbara Mandel Recreation Center in Palm Beach just before noon. He then walked out, accompanied by Melania Trump, and said he hopes “the right thing will happen” when votes are fully counted.
“I think we’re going to have a very big night,” he said. “And it’s going to be very exciting to watch.”
For the full story, go here.
In Jupiter, some voters cross party lines, while others double down
Not even party ties could predict how some voters cast their ballot at the Jupiter Community Center on Tuesday. Sandra Underhill said that though she is a registered Republican, she supported Charlie Crist.
“I just think DeSantis is (unfit),” Underhill said. “I’m not doing Trump or DeSantis ever.”
James Dix of Jupiter said he voted for Ron DeSantis for governor and Marco Rubio for the U.S. Senate.
“I voted for the best person that I thought was here to represent the American people,” he said.
Dix said the state leaders’ handling of the pandemic was a factor in his decision.
“I just felt that they were the right men that kept our state open and to keep it running,” he said. “You can’t take away people’s livelihoods that they worked all their lives for.”
— Julius Whigham II
Trump not on the ballot, but he’s still stealing headlines
He’s not on the ballot, but former President Donald Trump is in the spotlight this Election Day just the same.
Heading into the final day of voting, Trump was a ubiquitous sight from the campaign trail to the headlines.
At a rally in Ohio on Monday, Trump said he would make a “very big announcement” Nov. 15 at Mar-a-Lago. Many believe that’s when he will announce that he’s entering the 2024 presidential race.
For the full story, go here.
Voters in line recently moved to Palm Beach County; ‘I don’t trust the mail’
Voting in Palm Beach County has gone smoothly so far this Election Day morning, Supervisor of Elections Wendy Link said.
About 8,000 people across the county voted soon after polls opened at 7 a.m., Link said. One voter who went to the wrong precinct was given what is called an “action card,” she said, which listed directions to the correct polling place.
A couple of dozen people lined up to vote at the Dreyfoos School of the Arts in downtown West Palm Beach when polls opened. Numbers dropped off as the hour went on. Skies were blue and a breeze blew.
Several voters who spoke with The Palm Beach Post said they had recently moved to Palm Beach County from out of state.
One of them was Jarvis Rodgers, 42, from the Washington, D.C., area. He said he did not feel he would have enough time to get a mail-in ballot. He said he voted for “Dems down the line, because I’m on the side of democracy.”
One anti-mail voter, Richard Slappey, 37, said he moved to Palm Beach County from Georgia and cast his ballot in person at Dreyfoos because he feared “fraud.”
“I just don’t trust the mail,” Slappey said. “Stuff gets lost in shipping.” He did not want to say who he voted for, but said he was against “inflation” and “forced vaccination.” He said he has not been vaccinated against COVID-19.
As the morning went on, voters streamed into the county Supervisor of Elections main office on the northeast corner of Gun Club Road and Military Trail in suburban West Palm Beach, trying to find their polling place. Elections office workers, standing behind plastic dividers put up for the COVID pandemic, took voters’ information and helped them find the right address to cast their ballots.
— Chris Persaud
Trump, Melania cast their ballots; Trump confirms he voted for DeSantis
PALM BEACH — Former President Donald Trump went to the polls Tuesday, casting a ballot he acknowledged included a vote for Gov. Ron DeSantis, whom he’s poked a bit in the past few days leading up to the midterm elections.
Rumors have circulated that DeSantis could enter the 2024 presidential race. Trump has hinted that he also may enter the race. On Monday night in Ohio, he said he was going to make a “very big announcement” next Tuesday from Mar-a-Lago.
Trump voted at the Morton and Barbara Mandel Recreation Center in Palm Beach just before noon. He then walked out, accompanied by Melania Trump, and said he hopes “the right thing will happen” when votes are fully counted.
For the full story, go here.
Because of the times, voters decline to give names: ‘It’s sad, but that’s the way it is now.’
Election Day lines were short and smooth at Hagen Road Elementary School’s Precinct 8857 west of Boynton Beach during the lunch hour.
Voters reported the process took them a little less than 5 minutes and there were no issues.
“It was pretty easy,” said one woman. “I was surprised. It seemed like last time there were some problems with the ballots going through, but this time no problems at all.”
The woman, like many, was reluctant to identify herself during a time when she said the state and the country are “unfortunately very divided.”
“I’d love to give you my name,” she said. “But where I work, I know if my name was out there tied to anything being discussed politically, there would be repercussions. It’s sad, but that’s the way it is now.”
She said Florida is an important state and the results will be very telling as to what direction the country goes.
Another voter said the political divisiveness has escalated the past few years.
“In a word, COVID,” he pointed to as the culprit. “The way it was handled with the shutdown created a situation where people took a side.”
The 52-year-old man, who would only provide his first name, Jeff, said voting is as important as ever now.
“This is our chance to have a say in what matters,” he said.
— James Coleman
Florida accuses feds of breaking law by sending monitors inside polling places
Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration said the federal government is breaking Florida law by sending election monitors inside polling places to watch for voting and civil rights violations.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday that it would send election monitors to Florida and across the United States to watch for violations of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as the department has done in years past.
For the full story, go here.
Do I need ID to vote today?
To vote in Florida, you must present a valid photo ID with a signature. Here’s what’s accepted:
- Florida driver’s license
- Florida identification card issued by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
- United States passport
- Debit or credit card
- Military identification
- Student identification
- Retirement center identification
- Neighborhood association identification
- Public assistance identification
- Veteran health identification card issued by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs
- License to carry a concealed weapon or firearm issued pursuant to s. 790.06
- Employee identification card issued by any branch, department, agency, or entity of the Federal Government, the state, a county, or a municipality
According to the Florida Division of Elections, you can still vote on a provisional ballot if you don’t bring proper ID. As long as you are eligible and voted in the proper precinct, your provisional ballot will count, provided the signature on your provisional ballot matches the signature in your registration record.
Polling place: Where’s my voting location?
Florida voters must vote at their assigned polling precinct. To find your polling location, visit the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections’ website at pbcelections.org.
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