Florida voters face Aug. 6 deadline to request vote-by-mail ballots for Aug. 18 primary
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Florida voters who want a vote-by-mail ballot mailed to them for the state’s Aug. 18, 2026, primary have until Aug. 6 to make that request, according to the Florida Department of State’s election calendar.
The deadline is the next statewide election-administration date before the primary. The Department of State’s Division of Elections lists mandatory early voting from Aug. 8 through Aug. 15, followed by primary Election Day on Aug. 18.
The state calendar applies to Florida’s 2026 primary election, but voters are advised to contact their county Supervisor of Elections for the most current local information.
What the Aug. 6 deadline covers
The Aug. 6 deadline concerns a request to have a vote-by-mail ballot mailed. It is not primary Election Day, and it is separate from the mandatory early-voting period listed on the statewide calendar.
Florida’s Department of State identifies Aug. 6 as the deadline to request that a ballot be mailed. The department’s 2025–2026 Election Dates and Activities Calendar also lists Aug. 6 as the ballot-mailing request deadline, providing the same date in the state’s official election schedule.
Voters should not treat a timely request alone as a determination that a ballot will be counted. The statewide materials in this packet identify the deadline for requesting that a ballot be mailed, while county-specific procedures and other ballot-handling details are not provided on the statewide page.
Early voting begins Aug. 8
Mandatory early voting for the primary is scheduled to run from Saturday, Aug. 8, through Saturday, Aug. 15. That statewide mandatory period begins two days after the vote-by-mail request deadline and ends three days before the Aug. 18 primary.
The mandatory period establishes dates on the statewide calendar, but it does not mean every county has identical additional early-voting availability. County supervisors may offer optional early-voting days beyond Aug. 8 through Aug. 15.
For that reason, the Department of State directs voters to their county Supervisor of Elections for the latest information. The statewide election-dates page does not provide county-by-county ballot-request details or drop-box information.
Primary is part of Florida’s 2026 election calendar
The Aug. 18 primary is one of the principal statewide election dates in Florida’s 2026 calendar. The next statewide Election Day listed after the primary is the Nov. 3 general election.
The schedule sets out distinct stages for voters: the deadline to request that a vote-by-mail ballot be mailed, the mandatory early-voting period, primary Election Day and, later, the general election. Those are separate calendar events with separate dates.
No vote, legislative action, court ruling or policy change is at issue in the Aug. 6 deadline. It is an election-administration deadline published by the Florida Department of State for voters participating in the 2026 primary process.
Key dates
Aug. 6, 2026: Deadline to request that a vote-by-mail ballot be mailed.
Aug. 8–15, 2026: Mandatory early-voting period for the primary.
Aug. 18, 2026: Primary Election Day.
Nov. 3, 2026: General Election Day.
Voters seeking information specific to their county should consult their county Supervisor of Elections, as advised by the Department of State.
Sources
- Election Dates — 2026, Florida Department of State, Division of Elections
- 2025–2026 Election Dates and Activities Calendar, Florida Department of State
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