Floods and a Tornado Move US Polling Places on Election Day

Floods and a tornado forced election officials in at least six states to move polling places or change voting rules on Tuesday, as Americans cast ballots in the midterm elections. Officials in every affected state gave the same advice: check your polling place before you leave home.

Florida moves 21 sites

Florida was hit hardest. County officials in Brevard, Broward, Highlands, Indian River, Martin, Okeechobee, Palm Beach and St. Lucie counties set up alternative polling sites for 21 original sites covering 30 precincts, the state Division of Elections said in an alert sent late on Monday. The original sites were damaged by flooding, or the roads to them were flooded or unsafe to travel.

The moves were made under Executive Order 26-227, the fall flooding emergency order issued after Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency. Rainfall as high as 24 inches was reported in the hardest hit counties on Nov. 1 and Nov. 2, USA Today reported. In Brevard County, precincts that voted at Max K. Rodes Park Community Center now vote at New Shiloh Christian Center in Melbourne. In Martin County, voters assigned to Grace Presbyterian Church in Stuart now vote at the Martin County Elections Center. The Division lists every temporary location on its emergency election resources page. Florida polls close at 7 p.m. Eastern Time.

Navajo Nation shifts five sites

In the Southwest, heavy rain and flash flooding were expected to make it harder for some voters to reach polling places in parts of Colorado, Arizona, Utah and New Mexico, the Associated Press reported. The Navajo Election Administration shifted five polling locations, two in Arizona and three in New Mexico, because of flooding that has affected the region since October.

At Rock Point in Arizona, US 191 is closed, and the Arizona Secretary of State says Apache County voters may vote at any county vote center instead.

Electronic ballots in Utah and Colorado

Utah took a different route. Lieutenant Governor Deidre Henderson issued emergency election accommodations for San Juan County, where repeated flooding has cut off roads. Voters there who cannot reasonably travel to a polling place or a drop box can receive and return a ballot electronically, an option usually reserved for military, disabled and overseas voters.

Colorado did both. In Archuleta County, the Ross Aragon Community Center voter center and the Pagosa Springs Town Hall ballot drop box closed because of flood risk, the Colorado Secretary of State said. Voters can use the Archuleta County Courthouse voter center in Pagosa Springs instead. Flood affected voters in La Plata and Archuleta counties can also request an emergency ballot to return electronically.

Tornado damage in Oklahoma

In Oklahoma, a tornado on Sunday night, Nov. 1, damaged the roof and collapsed a wall of the Keyes Community Center in Cimarron County, according to a National Weather Service damage survey. The Washington Examiner reported the tornado was rated EF1. County officials moved the polling place because the building was unsafe. Signs at changed sites direct voters to the new location, spokesperson Misha Mohr told News 9. Oklahoma polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time.

Check before you travel

None of the moves cancels a vote. Every affected state says ballots cast at the temporary sites and under the emergency rules will be counted. The risk is a wasted trip to a closed building on flooded roads. Voters in the affected counties should confirm their site with their county elections office or state election board before they travel.