Early Voting in The Villages 2026: Every Site by County, the Hours, and Where to Vote on November 3

Which early voting sites are in or near The Villages?

Sumter County runs early voting at five recreation centers inside The Villages: Laurel Manor, Tierra Del Sol, Allamanda, Rohan and Everglades. Lake County's nearest sites are the Lady Lake Community Building and the Venetian Center in Leesburg. Marion County's site in the community is the Villages Mulberry Center. Each county's voters must use their own county's sites.

Florida counties run their own early voting, and a registered voter can use any early voting site in their home county, but only in that county. Sumter's elections office says so directly: its voters can vote at any of its early voting locations during the early voting dates. The table below lists the sites in or closest to The Villages for each county, as published for the 2026 general election.

Sumter's list is all seven of its sites. Lake County lists 12 early voting sites in total and Marion lists 9; the others are farther from The Villages, in places such as Clermont, Eustis, Tavares, Mount Dora, Dunnellon and Ocala. The Marion site's address is the same street address the District lists for Mulberry Grove Recreation, the regional complex in the Marion County part of the community.

If you plan to go by golf cart, the rules for carts on roads and paths are in our golf cart living guide. The recreation centers themselves are explained in our recreation centers guide.

Sumter sites from the Sumter County Supervisor of Elections Early Voting page; Lake and Marion sites from the Florida Division of Elections list of 2026 general election early voting and secure ballot intake station locations (dated October 2, 2026). Accessed October 26, 2026. Sites can change; confirm with your county before you go.

Which county do I vote in if I live in The Villages?

The county your home sits in, which is not always obvious. The Villages spans parts of Sumter, Lake and Marion counties, and the village name does not tell you the county. Your voter information card, your property tax bill and your county elections office's voter lookup all show it. The lookup also gives your Election Day precinct.

The Villages is a census-designated place that spans Sumter, Marion and Lake counties, and since the 2010s the community has expanded south in Sumter and north into Marion. The county line rarely matters day to day, until something official, like an election or a property tax bill, depends on it.

Three quick ways to confirm your county:

• Your voter information card. It is issued by your county's Supervisor of Elections and names your precinct.
• Your property tax bill or the property appraiser's record. Each county has its own appraiser and tax collector, and the bill comes from one of them.
• The state's precinct lookup. The Florida Division of Elections links to each county's voter and precinct lookup from its voter precinct lookup page.

Each of the three elections offices is separate, with its own phone line:

• Sumter County Supervisor of Elections, 7375 Powell Road, Suite 125, Wildwood; 352-569-1540; weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Lake County Supervisor of Elections, 1898 E Burleigh Boulevard, Tavares; 352-343-9734; weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Marion County Election Center, 981 NE 16th Street, Ocala; 352-620-3290; weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

If you are still shopping for a home, the village directory groups all 109 villages by section, which is a useful starting point before you check a specific address.

County span from Wikipedia (The Villages, Florida), used for orientation. Office addresses, phones and hours from each county Supervisor of Elections website, accessed October 26, 2026.

When does early voting end, and what are the hours in each county?

Early voting ends Saturday, October 31, 2026, in all three counties. Sumter opened October 24 and runs 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Lake opened October 19 and also runs 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Marion opened October 22 and runs 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. None of the three lists Sunday, November 1, as an early voting day.

Florida requires early voting to start at least 10 days before an election and end on the third day before it, with each site open at least 8 and no more than 12 hours a day. Inside those limits, each county chooses its own schedule, which is why the start dates and opening times below differ.

One caution on Marion: its main early voting page still shows the August primary schedule. The general election dates above come from Marion's Election Dates page and the state's site list, which agree.

From the Sumter County 2026 Election Information page, the Lake County Supervisor of Elections calendar and vote-by-mail deadlines page, the Marion County Election Dates page, and the Florida Division of Elections early voting page, accessed October 26, 2026.

Where do I vote on Election Day, November 3?

Only at your assigned precinct. Unlike early voting, Election Day voting in Florida is tied to the precinct for your address, and polls are open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. In the Sumter County part of The Villages, 22 precincts vote at recreation centers or a village center. Check your precinct before you leave home.

The state's rule is plain: on Election Day you vote at your assigned precinct or polling place. Anyone in line at 7 p.m. still gets to vote. If you show up at the wrong precinct, poll workers will direct you to the right one, which can cost you a drive across the community.

Sumter County publishes its full precinct table. These are the precincts with a polling place in The Villages:

The table does not tell you which precinct an address belongs to, and the nearest recreation center is not necessarily yours. Use your voter information card or the county lookup. Lake and Marion County residents should use their own county's precinct finder; neither county's pages we read list Villages precincts in a table like Sumter's.

Precinct table from the Sumter County Supervisor of Elections Election Day page; precinct and line rules from the Florida Division of Elections Election Day Voting page (last updated August 7, 2026). Accessed October 26, 2026.

What ID do I need to vote in Florida?

A current, valid photo ID with a signature. Florida accepts 12 kinds, including a Florida driver license or ID card, a U.S. passport, a debit or credit card, military ID and a VA health ID card. If the photo ID has no signature, bring a second ID that does. Without ID you can still vote a provisional ballot.

The Florida Division of Elections lists these acceptable photo IDs:

• Florida driver license
• Florida identification card from the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
• U.S. passport
• Debit or credit card
• Military identification
• Student identification
• Retirement center identification
• Neighborhood association identification
• Public assistance identification
• Veteran health identification card issued by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
• A Florida license to carry a concealed weapon or firearm
• An employee ID card issued by a federal, state, county or municipal government

The list includes neighborhood association and retirement center IDs. None of the pages we read says whether a Villages Resident ID card qualifies, so the simplest path is a driver license, a Florida ID card or a passport.

If you vote a provisional ballot because you forgot your ID, the state says it counts if you are eligible, voted in the right precinct and your signature matches your registration record. The state also describes a cure affidavit process with a deadline of 5 p.m. on the second day after the election. Questions about your own situation go to your county elections office.

From the Florida Division of Elections Election Day Voting page (last updated August 7, 2026) and the Lake County Required Identification page, accessed October 26, 2026.

How do I return a mail ballot in The Villages this close to the election?

Hand delivery is the most dependable option now. All three counties require mail ballots to be received by 7 p.m. on Election Day, not postmarked. You can drop a voted ballot at a secure intake station at any of your county's early voting sites during early voting hours, or bring it to your county elections office.

Each county has slightly different in-person options, and the details matter in the last week:

• Sumter. Secure ballot intake stations at every early voting site, during early voting only. After that, hand deliver to the Wildwood office by 5 p.m. on Election Day or the Bushnell office by 7 p.m. on Election Day. Mailed ballots must arrive by 7 p.m. on Election Day.
• Lake. Return in person at the Tavares office, weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., or at any early voting site from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Lake's office asks voters to allow 7 to 10 days for postal delivery, and the return envelope must be signed.
• Marion. Intake stations at each early voting site during early voting hours, or the Election Center in Ocala. Marion notes that its 24/7 outdoor drop box is no longer available.

Sumter's office also notes that all vote-by-mail requests expired after the 2024 general election. If you assumed a ballot would arrive automatically and it has not, check your status with your county's voter lookup, which shows whether a request is on file and when a ballot was mailed and received.

From the Sumter County Vote-By-Mail Information page, the Lake County Returning a Vote-by-Mail Ballot and Vote-by-Mail Deadlines pages, and the Marion County Early Voting page, accessed October 26, 2026.

I just moved to The Villages. Can I still vote here?

Only if you were registered in Florida by the book closing date, which was October 5, 2026, for this election. If you were already registered in Florida and moved here from another Florida county, contact your new county's elections office about updating your address. Rules on your specific case belong with the Supervisor of Elections.

The registration deadline for the November 3 general election, the date that books close, was October 5, 2026, according to Marion's and Sumter's election calendars. That date has passed, so anyone who registers now is registering for a later election.

For future elections, put voter registration on your move-in list alongside your driver license, tag and resident ID. Our first 30 days checklist walks through the other offices new residents deal with. The state's Election Day page also covers what happens if your address is challenged at the polls: if your new address is in the same precinct, you may still vote a regular ballot; if not, poll workers send you to the right one.

This post describes published procedures. It is not legal advice, and any question about your own eligibility should go to your county's Supervisor of Elections.

From the Marion County Election Dates page, the Sumter County 2026 Election Information page and the Florida Division of Elections Election Day Voting page, accessed October 26, 2026.

The local take

I was born and raised in Marion County, and I represent buyers independently. I am not writing about who to vote for. I am writing about the county line, because an election is often the first time a new owner notices it.

The county line is a real part of the house. Two homes with the same floor plan, a few minutes apart by cart, can sit in different counties. That changes which elections office you deal with, and it also changes which property appraiser values the home, which tax collector sends the bill, and which county government handles permits and services. The village name will not tell you.

The trade-off people miss. Buyers compare floor plans, the bond and the amenity fee, then learn the county from the closing paperwork. I would rather you know it on the first showing, because the tax bill is part of the true monthly cost.

What I would check. For every home on a shortlist, I pull the property appraiser record to confirm the county and the current tax bill, then run the full monthly number through the cost of living calculator. For tax questions about a specific home, a CPA or the county property appraiser is the right call. Send me the addresses you are weighing and I will tell you which county each one is in.

Frequently asked questions

Can I vote early at any recreation center in The Villages?

No. Only five Sumter County recreation centers host early voting in 2026: Laurel Manor, Tierra Del Sol, Allamanda, Rohan and Everglades. They serve Sumter County voters only. Lake and Marion County voters must use their own county's early voting sites, such as the Lady Lake Community Building or the Villages Mulberry Center.

Is early voting open in The Villages on Sunday, November 1, 2026?

Not in the three counties of The Villages. Sumter, Lake and Marion all end early voting on Saturday, October 31, and the state's site list shows no early voting on Sunday, November 1, at the Lake and Marion sites. After October 31, your next chance to vote in person is Election Day at your assigned precinct.

Can I drop off my mail ballot at an Election Day polling place?

The county pages we read describe secure ballot intake stations at early voting sites during early voting hours, plus the elections offices. They do not list Election Day polling places as return points. After October 31, take a voted mail ballot to your county elections office during its posted hours. It must be received by 7 p.m. on November 3, and Sumter's Wildwood office lists a 5 p.m. Election Day cutoff.

Do I need my Villages resident ID to vote?

No. Voting is run by the county, not the District, and the requirement is a current, valid photo ID with a signature from the state's list. A Florida driver license, Florida ID card or U.S. passport all qualify. The state's list does not name the Villages Resident ID card, so do not rely on it alone.

How do I see what is on my ballot before I vote in The Villages?

Check your county Supervisor of Elections website for a sample ballot. Marion's 2026 general election sample ballot is linked from its homepage. Sumter and Lake voters can call their offices, at 352-569-1540 and 352-343-9734, if they cannot find one online. Reading it at home first makes the visit faster.

Is there a 24-hour ballot drop box in The Villages?

Not according to the county pages we read. Marion says its 24/7 outdoor drop box is no longer available, and Sumter and Lake describe intake stations staffed during early voting hours and office hours only. If you need to return a ballot outside those hours, mailing it early is the only option, and it must arrive by 7 p.m. on Election Day.

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