Sarasota County voters have more ways than ever to return a vote-by-mail ballot for the Nov. 3 general election, but every option runs into the same hard deadline: the Supervisor of Elections Office must receive the ballot by 7 p.m. on Election Day. A postmark doesn’t extend that date. Ballots that arrive late are rejected, even if they were mailed well before the deadline.
If you plan to mail your ballot, it needs one Forever stamp or 82 cents in postage, and the U.S. Postal Service recommends mailing by Tuesday, Oct. 27 to make sure it arrives in time. Prefer to skip the mailbox? You can drop ballots off at county elections offices through Nov. 3, or at any of 11 early voting locations from Oct. 19 through Nov. 1, open daily 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Two sites are new this election: Twin Lakes Park near Clark Road and the North Port elections office, giving south county voters a shorter trip.
Supervisor of Elections Ron Turner says convenience is the whole point of vote-by-mail, and it’s up to each voter how to return a ballot. The one thing that isn’t negotiable is the receipt deadline. Election Day office hours run 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Where are you planning to drop your ballot, or are you sticking with the stamp? Let us know in the comments.
