Supervisor of Elections Turner stresses need to ensure that ballots are counted
“Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections Ron Turner is urging voters to avoid the rush” and return their vote-by-mail ballots well before the Aug. 18 Primary Day deadline,” his staff announced this week.
“In the elections business, it’s best not to procrastinate,” Turner said in a news release. “The longer you wait to return your vote-by-mail ballot, the less time you have to ensure that your ballot makes it in time to be counted,” Turner continued. “There are a lot of moving parts when voting by mail, and I want to ensure everyone has a smooth experience. That starts with returning your vote-by-mail ballot early.”
Turner points out that voters returning their ballots by mail should place one Forever stamp, or 82 cents in postage, on the envelope and mail it no later than Tuesday, Aug. 11, to ensure delivery by 7 p.m. on Primary day, the release says. Voters also may also drop off their vote-by-mail ballots in person at any secure ballot intake station, the release points out.
Drop off ballots inside any Sarasota County elections office by 5 p.m. on Aug. 18
Regular business hours for the offices are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, the release notes.
Further, the offices will be open on weekends during the early voting period, the release says. The hours will be 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Aug. 8 and Aug. 9, and Aug. 15 and 16.
On Primary day, the offices will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
The elections offices are located as follows:
- Terrace Building, 2001 Adams Lane in downtown Sarasota.
- R. L. Anderson Administration Center, 4000 S. Tamiami Trail in Venice.
- Biscayne Plaza, which stands at 13640 Tamiami Trail in North Port.
Voters also may drop off their ballots inside any early voting location from Aug. 8 to Aug. 16, the release notes. Those facilities will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on those days.
The early voting locations are as follows:
• The Sarasota, Venice and North Port elections offices (listed above).
• The Betty Johnson North Sarasota Library, which stands at 2801 Newtown Blvd. in Sarasota.
• Colonial Oaks Park, which is located at 5300 Colonial Oaks Blvd. in Sarasota.
• Gulf Gate Library, which stands at 7112 Curtiss Ave. in Sarasota.
“We know voters can have questions about the vote-by-mail process, “ Turner said in the release, “so for 2026 ,we created a page on our website that walks voters through the process of returning their ballot. Voters may visit SarasotaVotes.gov/Instructions for a step-by-step guide on returning their vote-by-mail ballot.”
While they are on the website, the release adds, voters also may track their ballots and sign up for notifications, so they can determine when their ballots were “requested, sent, received and counted.”
For more information, visit SarasotaVotes.gov or call 941-861-8618.