Orange County tops 324,000 ballots; nearly 20,000 cast at two Apopka early voting sites

In Summary:

Orange County recorded 223,599 early in-person ballots and 100,844 mail ballots in unofficial figures retrieved November 2. The Apopka Community Center and John H. Bridges Community Center together accounted for 19,542 early ballots, while a separate House District 39 tally also showed higher early in-person participation among registered Democrats. An earlier statewide report showed Republicans ahead in combined early and mail participation, with Election Day voting still to come.

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With Election Day here and early voting completed, Orange County voters have already cast 324,443 ballots, according to unofficial figures retrieved late Monday morning, November 2. Two early voting locations in Apopka and South Apopka accounted for 19,542 in-person ballots.

Related: From the Courthouse to Congress: Five races shaping Apopka’s November ballot.

Registered Democrats account for the largest share of ballots cast countywide, while registration advantages vary across the districts serving the area. The turnout figures identify voters by party registration, but they do not reveal which candidates those voters supported.

A closer look at Apopka’s early voting locations

The Apopka Community Center recorded 17,149 early in-person ballots. Registered Democrats cast 7,714, Republicans cast 5,590, and voters with no party affiliation cast 3,361. Minor-party voters accounted for another 484 ballots.

At the John H. Bridges Community Center in South Apopka, voters cast 2,393 early ballots. Registered Democrats accounted for 1,537, Republicans for 314, voters with no party affiliation for 470, and minor-party voters for 72.

Democrats accounted for approximately 45% of ballots cast at the Apopka Community Center and 64.2% at the John H. Bridges Community Center. Across both sites, registered Democrats cast 3,347 more ballots than registered Republicans.

These figures describe activity at the two voting locations, rather than turnout exclusively among Apopka or South Apopka residents. Orange County voters could use any early voting location in the county, and residents of these communities could also vote elsewhere or by mail.

The two locations accounted for approximately 8.7% of Orange County’s early in-person ballots. Their totals are already included in the countywide figures.

The local registration picture

Orange County Commission District 2 includes Apopka, Ocoee, Lockhart, Tangerine, Zellwood and surrounding portions of northwest Orange County. Democrats have the most registered voters at 44,550, followed by Republicans at 34,189 and voters with no party affiliation at 31,091.

Those figures give Democrats a registration advantage of 10,361 over Republicans. Democrats represent a plurality, rather than a majority, of the electorate. The registration totals above exclude minor-party voters.

The nonpartisan District 2 runoff pits incumbent Commissioner Mike Crabb against former state Rep. Kamia Brown. Updated district-specific turnout figures broken down by party were not available for this report, and the Apopka voting-location totals should not be treated as a substitute.

In Congressional District 11, Republicans hold a substantial registration advantage, with 253,009 registered voters compared with 157,635 Democrats. Another 144,184 voters have no party affiliation, leaving Republicans with 95,374 more registered voters than Democrats.

The registration gap is considerably narrower in Florida House District 39, where Republicans have 43,630 registered voters and Democrats have 41,454. The Republican advantage is 2,176 voters in the district, which includes portions of Orange and Seminole counties.

An Oct. 30 Florida Politics report lists another 33,261 voters with no party affiliation in House District 39. That substantial voting bloc adds another factor to the contest between Republican state Rep. Doug Bankson and Democratic challenger Dr. Jarod Fox.

Countywide registration figures retrieved from the Orange County Supervisor of Elections website Oct. 29 show 323,646 registered Democrats and 228,730 registered Republicans. The countywide electorate participates in contests including Orange County mayor and clerk of courts.

The district registration figures reflect the Oct. 5 book-closing deadline. Registration describes the electorate’s affiliations and should be distinguished from the number of voters who have cast ballots.

Orange County Democrats lead early voting and mail participation

Orange County’s unofficial turnout dashboard showed 223,599 early in-person ballots and 100,844 mail ballots when the figures were retrieved late Monday morning. Together, the two voting methods accounted for 324,443 ballots.

Early in-person voting ended Sunday, November 1. The mail-ballot figures remain a snapshot of participation as of the dashboard check.

Registered Democrats had cast 107,442 early ballots and 49,967 mail ballots, totaling 157,409. Registered Republicans accounted for 59,911 early ballots and 26,323 mail ballots, totaling 86,234.

Voters with no party affiliation had cast 50,230 early ballots and 22,101 mail ballots, totaling 72,331. Voters registered with other parties accounted for another 8,469 ballots.

Registered Democrats accounted for approximately 48.5% of ballots cast, compared with 26.6% for Republicans, 22.3% for voters with no party affiliation and 2.6% for other parties.

Democrats held a participation advantage of 71,175 ballots over Republicans. That difference does not establish a lead for Democratic candidates, because voters may cross party lines, split their tickets or leave individual contests blank.

The countywide figures provide participation context for the mayor and clerk of courts elections. They do not represent turnout totals for Commission District 2, House District 39 or Congressional District 11.

House District 39 early voting favors Democratic participation

A separate district-level tally provides a partial look at participation in House District 39. According to Majority Analytics figures updated late Monday morning, registered Democrats cast 14,846 early in-person ballots, compared with 12,891 Republicans.

Voters with no party affiliation accounted for 7,365 early ballots, while minor-party voters cast another 1,037. Together, they cast 36,139 early in-person ballots.

The tally covers voters residing in both counties’ portions of House District 39 and shows registered Democrats casting 1,955 more early in-person ballots than Republicans. However, Majority Analytics does not include district-level mail ballots in these figures, so they should not be described as combined turnout.

Republicans hold an advantage in the available statewide totals

The statewide report retrieved for this article was compiled November 1 at 8:09 am and reflects reported activity through the previous day. Its cutoff is earlier than the Orange County and House District 39 figures retrieved Monday.

Registered Republicans had cast 1,430,249 early in-person ballots and 668,424 mail ballots, totaling 2,098,673. Registered Democrats had cast 1,127,932 early ballots and 815,396 mail ballots, totaling 1,943,328.

Voters with no party affiliation accounted for 985,610 combined ballots, while voters registered with other parties accounted for 131,926. Across all registration groups, the report listed 5,159,537 ballots.

Republicans held a statewide participation advantage of 155,345 ballots over Democrats in that snapshot. Republicans accounted for more early in-person ballots, while Democrats accounted for more mail ballots.

Because the report excludes activity after its cutoff, these figures are not final statewide early voting totals. They measure participation by registration, rather than support for individual candidates.

Election Day will complete the picture

The available figures show different patterns across overlapping electorates. Democrats hold a registration plurality in Commission District 2, Republicans have a narrow registration advantage in House District 39, and Republicans hold a much larger advantage in Congressional District 11.

Orange County’s updated early and mail figures show stronger participation by registered Democrats, as do the early in-person counts at both Apopka locations and within House District 39. The earlier statewide report shows more ballots cast by registered Republicans.

Registration advantages and pre-Election Day participation offer useful context, but neither guarantees an outcome. Tuesday’s voters will complete the turnout picture, and the results will show which candidates earned their support.

Key Points:

• Orange County’s unofficial total reached 324,443 ballots, with registered Democrats accounting for 48.5%, Republicans 26.6%, voters with no party affiliation 22.3%, and other parties 2.6%.
• The Apopka Community Center recorded 17,149 early ballots, and the John H. Bridges Community Center recorded 2,393; those totals reflect voting-site activity, not exclusively ballots from local residents.
• Registered Democrats cast 71,175 more early and mail ballots than registered Republicans countywide.
• House District 39 recorded 36,139 early in-person ballots, with registered Democrats outnumbering Republicans by 1,955; that tally excludes mail ballots.
• Republicans held a 155,345-ballot participation advantage in an earlier statewide snapshot, but none of these figures establishes a lead for individual candidates.