Voting booths line the interior of the Leon County Supervisor of Elections office on Saturday, August 8, 2026, the first day of early voting in Tallahassee.
Sarah Cheatham | Tallahassee Dem
USA TODAY Network, Reuters
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Today is the last day to register to vote in Florida for the Nov. 3 midterm election. Here’s what Tallahassee students should know before they cast their ballots.
The general midterm election will decide races for Florida governor, the Florida House and Senate, and Florida’s seats in the U.S. House and Senate. Voters will also weigh in on the Florida Supreme court, special elections, and state constitutional amendments. Leon County’s ballot includes races for Tallahassee’s next mayor and decides Tallahassee City Commission and Leon County Commission races.
“I encourage all eligible Leon County residents to register to vote today. If you are not registered in Florida by October 5, you cannot vote in the General Election. Registration is easy, and my office will stay open late on October 5 to serve our newest voters,” Leon County Supervisor of Elections Mark Earley said in a Facebook post.
Students who want to vote by mail must request a ballot by Oct. 22. The Leon County Supervisor of Elections website has resources to check your voting status, but queries about voting are not always that simple.
Common mistakes
One mistake college voters make is failing to update their registration when they move. Many students come to Tallahassee from a different Florida city or another state and forget this crucial step.
“It’s important to check your voter registration status, make sure your information is up to date, and know where you’re supposed to vote,” People Power for Florida (PPFF) intern and FSU political science major Kane Ryan said to the FSView.
PPFF is an organization that helps students register to vote. Its FSU chapter often tables on Landis Green, where students can check their voter status on their way to class. “We work to make civic engagement more accessible,” Ryan said.
PPFF and the Leon County Supervisor of Elections office are often on campus to help students check their status. However, the process can be more complicated for students in specific situations.
Voting as an out-of-state student
Out-of-state students who want to vote in Tallahassee must register in Florida for the first time rather than update an existing registration. They can register online, at the Leon County Supervisor of Elections office, or at an organization’s table on campus.
Online registration requires a Florida driver’s license or Florida ID card, along with the last four digits of a Social Security number. Students without a Florida-issued ID can still fill out the application online, but they must print, sign, and mail or deliver it to the Supervisor of Elections office.
If you are an out-of-state student and want to vote by mail in your home state, follow your state’s instructions for requesting an absentee ballot.
Voting as an in-state student
In-state students who want to vote in Tallahassee can update their address to Leon County online, with PPFF on Landis Green, or at the Leon County Supervisor of Elections Office.
Students can update other information, such as their name of party affiliation, the same way, and those who moved from another Florida county can also update their address at any Leon County early voting site.
In-state students who want to vote in their hometown can request a vote-by-mail ballot from their home county’s Supervisor of Elections by Oct. 22. This is a good option for those who want to vote in local races back home but can’t make it there in person on Election Day.
Each county’s Supervisor of Elections website will have a similar page to request these ballots; for example, Hillsborough County’s site is nearly identical and offers the same resources.
The Leon County Supervisor of Elections has an online request form for a vote-by-mail ballot, which must be requested by Oct. 22.
Students can double-check their registration status through the Florida Department of State’s voter information lookup page, which only requires a name and date of birth.
Voting on Election Day
Before heading to the polls on Nov. 3 in your county, voters also must know their precinct, or the specific location where they must vote. If voters are registered in Leon County, they can check which precinct they will vote in on the county’s website using their name and date of birth.
“Voting is the easiest way to ensure your voice is heard. It’s your platform to support what you believe in and your opportunity to learn more about the processes and people that make decisions on our behalf,” FSU Civic Engagement Board Executive Director Ryan Gans said to the FSView.
Where voters cast their ballots depends on where they are registered, and if students wish, they can check this on the State of Florida’s website or by looking up their precinct on their county’s Supervisor of Elections website.
If you can’t make it to the voting booth on Nov. 3, Leon County, along with other counties in Florida, has an early voting period in the weeks ahead of Election Day. In Leon County, early voting is from Oct. 19 through Nov. 1, and registered voters can vote at any of ten early voting sites in the county, including at the Florida State University and Florida A&M University Student Unions.
“At the end of the day, your voice matters,” Ryan said, “but it’s important to make sure you’re prepared to use it.”
Mira Lemstrom is a Staff Writer for the FSView & Florida Flambeau, the student-run, independent online news service for the FSU and Tallahassee communities. Email our staff at contact@fsview.com.
This article originally appeared on FSU News: Don’t know how to vote? Here’s what Tallahassee students should do
Reporting by Mira Lemstrom, Staff Writer, FSView / FSU News
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This story was originally published October 5, 2026 at 9:01 AM.