Orlando, Florida

Election officials in several Florida counties, including Seminole, Broward, and Monroe, are investigating delays in vote-by-mail ballots moving through the U.S. Postal Service. Seminole County has issued more than 500 replacement ballots, with one local delivery taking seven days; a Broward official's son waited 12 days for a ballot sent from Orlando. USPS says it has found no delivery issues in Broward or Monroe. Central Florida counties outside Seminole report no similar problems. With Florida's 7 p.m. Nov. 3 return deadline approaching, officials are urging voters who haven't mailed ballots to instead vote early in person or drop ballots at secure intake stations.

Broward County's Supervisor of Elections, Joe Scott, is urging voters to hand-deliver mail-in ballots after complaints of slow postal delivery, with some ballots taking nearly two weeks to arrive or failing to arrive at all; the U.S. Postal Service says it is investigating. Neighboring Miami-Dade County reported no similar delays. In Philadelphia, officials highlighted security at the city's Election Warehouse and urged roughly 40,000 voters still holding mail ballots to return them in person, noting postmarks do not count. In Ohio, heavy early voting turnout in Franklin County has strained absentee mail delivery, with some overseas ballots stalled in transit as the Election Day deadline nears.

The Department of Justice has charged six Florida residents—lawful permanent residents from Cuba, Canada, Ecuador, and Brazil—with illegally voting in the 2022 and 2024 elections despite lacking U.S. citizenship. All face charges of illegal voting by an alien; three also face additional charges for falsely claiming citizenship, which carries a stiffer potential sentence. Those three could face up to five years on the citizenship charge plus one year for illegal voting, while the remaining three face a maximum of one year. Voting patterns varied, with most defendants casting ballots in both election cycles. The cases stem from an investigation by Homeland Security, the Florida Department of State, and Hernando County election officials.

Alex Alvarado, a GOP operative implicated in Florida's 2020 "ghost candidate" scheme, is now sending text messages suggesting Democratic attorney general candidate Jose Javier Rodríguez won't "defend reproductive freedom." The texts, funded through a newly registered committee called Lower Our Costs Now, cite a 2015 abortion bill vote Rodríguez missed on the floor but later recorded a "no" vote on afterward. Rodríguez's campaign calls the ads misleading and notes his Planned Parenthood endorsement. Alvarado, an early donor to incumbent Attorney General James Uthmeier, was previously tied to 2020 efforts—some resulting in convictions—to siphon votes from Democrats using decoy independent candidates, including a scheme that helped defeat Rodríguez's state Senate bid.

Orange County, Florida voters head to the polls Nov. 3 to elect a new mayor for the first time in eight years, choosing between Tiffany Moore Russell and Chris Messina to succeed Jerry Demings. Both candidates laid out economic plans focused on high-paying jobs. Messina proposed positioning the county as a space-tech hub and launching "Orange County Works," a $10 million skilled-trades education initiative modeled on Osceola County's Prosper program, citing a shortage of over 2,000 trades workers. Moore Russell emphasized strengthening existing industries—tourism, manufacturing, modeling and simulation, and Lake Nona's Medical City—while streamlining permitting and expanding workforce training through CareerSource to attract new businesses.

Early voting opens in Harris County, Texas, running through Oct. 30, with several closely watched local races on the ballot. Voters will choose a new county judge for the first time since 2018, with Democrat Letitia Plummer facing Republican Orlando Sanchez to succeed the retiring Lina Hidalgo; a recent University of Houston poll showed Plummer with a narrow lead. Commissioner races are also on the ballot in Precincts 2 and 4, pitting Democratic incumbents against Republican challengers. Redrawn congressional districts add further intrigue, with new matchups in Districts 9 and 18. Houston voters will additionally decide Proposition A on marijuana enforcement and no-knock warrants, while League City weighs license plate camera use and Cy-Fair ISD considers a bond package.

Florida's Latino voters, roughly a quarter of the state's electorate, are emerging as a key constituency heading into the 2026 midterms, after many shifted toward Republicans in 2024. Republican and Democratic strategists interviewed by News 6 disagree sharply on which issues will determine whether that shift holds.

Republicans, represented by RNC Hispanic communications director Jaime Florez, credit President Trump's economic record — citing lower inflation, prescription drug costs and job growth — for the party's gains. Democrats, through Puerto Rico Democratic Party chair Luis Dávila Pernas, counter that cost of living remains a burden and claim some Latino Trump voters now feel "buyer's remorse." Immigration enforcement is another flashpoint: the administration has reported more than 985,000 deportations and moved to end Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelans and Haitians, actions Republicans defend as lawful enforcement while Democrats argue they have alarmed immigrant communities amid aggressive ICE arrests. Both sides agree voters increasingly want results over partisan conflict as Florida heads toward November's vote.