05-03-2025
Sarasota County opens applications for 2026 mail-in ballots
Sarasota County has begun accepting vote-by-mail ballot requests for the 2026 midterm elections, the Supervisor of Elections has announced.
'This law has been in place for a few years now and my hope is that voters recognize that if they want to vote by mail, they need to renew after each general election cycle,' Elections Supervisor Ron Turner said in a statement. 'The good news is that a voter can easily submit a new request that will last through the end of 2026.'
The elections office said it mailed over 105,000 renewal notices to those who voted by mail in 2024.
In 2026, U.S. Sen. Ashley Moody will look to defend her Florida seat after she was appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis to replace Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Floridians will also elect a new Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Chief Financial Officer (CFO), and Agriculture Commissioner.
State Sen. Joe Gruthers, a Sarasota Republican, has already announced his election campaign to be Florida's next CFO, and has secured a vital endorsement from President Donald Trump.
In Sarasota County, Commissioners Joe Neunder (District 2) and Mark Smith (District 4) will be up for reelection. Three seats on the Sarasota County School Board will be up for grabs.
There will be five contested seats each for the County Charter Review and Sarasota Memorial Hospital Boards; two seats on the Sarasota City Commission, currently occupied by Vice Mayor Debbie Trice and Commissioner Jen Ahearn-Koch; two seats on the North Port City Commission, currently held by Mayor Phil Stokes and Vice Mayor Pete Emrich; and five seats on the Venice City Council.
Overall voter turnout in Sarasota County for the November 2024 elections was a notch about 84% − the highest rate since 1992.
Interested voters can request a mail-in ballot elections office, over the phone (941-861-8618) or online at
Christian Casale covers local government for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Email him at ccasale@ or christiancasale@
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasotans can get a head start on 2026 absentee ballots
