TAMPA, FL (WFLA) – It’s Primary Day in Florida. The polls are open statewide from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
In Hillsborough County, 348 polling sites are available for registered Republican or Democrat voters.
“One of the things that happens before we can even put the machines out in the polling sites is we conduct what’s called a logic and accuracy test to make sure they machines count appropriately,” said Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections Craig Latimer.
Latimer tells 8 On Your Side that every ballot will be hand-counted after it’s cast to make sure the machines report the final total accurately.
More than 25 percent of registered voters in Hillsborough County have already picked their presidential favorite either by early voting or mail, he said. That’s more than 177,000 people. Tuesday, March 15 is the last chance for residents to vote.FIND OUT MORE: What you need to know to vote in the Florida Primary
The Associated Press says the state has about 4.3 million Republicans and 4.6 million Democrats on active voter rolls. Another 3.2 million Floridians registered as independent or with minor parties can’t vote in the primaries.
The Republican primary is a winner-take-all contest for 99 delegates. While 14 names will be on the ballot, only Donald Trump, Sen. Marco Rubio, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and Ohio Gov. John Kasich are still competing.
The Democratic primary between Hillary Clinton and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders will award 214 delegates proportionally.
