Local

Early voting turnout exceed expectations in Orange County

ORLANDO, Fla. — Early voting started Friday, and some Orange County polling locations posted record-breaking numbers, according to the office of the Supervisor of Elections.

The southwest branch library in the Dr. Phillips neighborhood has already seen more than twice as many voters as the last two elections, officials said. It’s gotten so busy that a sheriff’s deputy was called out to direct traffic and parking there.

Across all 15 early voting locations Friday, a total of 3,687 people voted early—compared to 1,083 during the first day of early voting in 2016.

Elections Supervisor Bill Cowles said the Apopka early voting center has been about as busy as the Dr. Phillips location.

He said he hopes the momentum carries through the early voting season to the general election.

I think the fact that we've got the voters to understand that you can vote early and in this service-industry community, people want to vote at their convenience and that's what early voting does," he said.

Channel 9’s Deanna Allbrittin has reached out to other counties to see if their numbers are also exceeding expectations.