(WSVN) - Election Day has come and polls across South Florida are seeing voters come out in high numbers.
Voters began arriving at Miami-Dade Fire Rescue’s Palm Springs North Fire Rescue Station, at 7700 NW 186th St., early Tuesday morning to cast their ballots.
7News cameras captured poll workers finishing up their last-minute preparations less than an hour before the polling station was set to welcome voters.
The first couple to form the line at the fire rescue station said they always wait until Election Day to cast their ballots.
“Easier for me, and I always do it that way,” said voter Ron Smith. “I guess it would be my routine.”
“We went to a couple of early voting sites, and the lines were ridiculous, so we decided, we figured, if all these people are going to vote that early if we get here early enough, we should be first in line, which happened to be that I was correct,” said Fritz Masson. “We are one of the first ones in line.”
Voters said they were happy not having to wait in long lines.
“It went very smoothly,” said one voter.
“There wasn’t much waiting,” said Marthey Beliard. “There was a lot of flow. Everyone moved peacefully through the polls.”
First-time voter Yari Bradfield went to the polls with her parents.
“They’re from Panama, so to be able to come here and share my American heritage and for them to come over and do citizenship too, so just doing our civic duty.”
“I felt very secure and safe,” said Carla Sanchez. “Everybody, things were social distancing so super comfortable inside there and excited, because I think today’s going to be a great day and really looking forward to the results.”
In Miami-Dade County, more than one million voters cast their ballots early. More than 64,000 voters cast their ballots as of noon on Tuesday.
“I think a lot of people did do mail-in voting, but it was kind of nice. I didn’t go to school down here, so it was nice to actually come and physically do it,” said another voter. “They made the process super easy.”
In Broward, electoral officials said they expect a low voter turnout due to the high number of mail-in ballots and early voters.
At Rick Case Honda in Davie, voters started to form the line to the polling station ahead of its start time.
“It’s something about election day that gets me really excited,” said one voter.
“Waking up a little bit earlier, I get to be in the top 10 with all these good people,” said voter Jason Spatafora.
7News spoke with one man who said he arrived early to avoid long lines and mentioned why he decided to vote in person.
“In-person voting is just kind of, like, it’s the way I’ve always done it, and I don’t want to leave anything to chance and forget about it, spill coffee on it or anything like that,” said Spatafora.
“I want to make sure I’m walking in to make sure my vote is accounted for,” said another voter.
“I got here about 6:40 a.m.,” said a voter. “I waited about 20 minutes for the precinct to actually open, and then it took me about five to 10 minutes to actually get in to vote, so it’s actually been pretty smooth if you ask me.”
Some voters said they want to ensure their voices are heard.
“I don’t want anybody to have [an] excuse that they didn’t receive or anything like that, so I feel better if I do it personally,” a voter said.
“Me, as an African-American, I know that a lot of people died for me to be able to do this, so it’s my duty to go out and actually execute it, so I’m so proud of this moment that I actually got to come out and vote,” another voter said.
As of 11:40 a.m. on Tuesday, more than 63,000 people have cast their ballots in the county.
In Broward County, more than 800,000 voters cast their ballots early.
County election officials in both Miami-Dade and Broward announced some rules that voters should keep in mind for election day.
Voters are encouraged to review their sample ballot before visiting the polls so that the voting process will move smoothly.
“Went in there and went out in a couple of minutes,” said one voter. “Every Election Day is important. This is just as important as the previous, so I think this a right for all Americans to do.”
Lines at polling stations may appear longer as officials are still adhering to social distancing rules for voters’ safety.
Unlike early voting, voters must go to their assigned voting location on Election Day.
Those who still need to drop off their mail-in ballots can drop them off at one of these locations.
Polling locations are open from until 7 p.m. If you are in line at that time or before then, you will get to vote.
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