Palm Beach County Sets Dec. 9 for Special Election
Dec. 9 will see the only contest on the Palm Beach County ballot: a special election to fill a vacancy in the Florida House of Representatives. The seat was left open by the July death of Rep. Joe Casello. Three candidates will appear on the ballot. Democrat Rob Long, Republican Maria Zack, and independent Karen Yeh will compete for the district seat.
The election will be held at 53 neighborhood polling places that open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Voters may line up until the closing time, and ballots cast after 7 p.m. will be counted. Election‑day voting requires a valid photo ID with a signature; Florida driver’s licenses, state ID cards, passports, and other signed IDs are accepted. Voter registration cards alone are not an acceptable form of identification.
Only residents of Florida House District 90, which borders Hypoluxo Road to the north, Military Trail to the west, the Delray‑Beach‑Boca Raton line to the south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, may vote. The district includes parts of Boynton Beach, Delray Beach, Briny Breezes, Golf, Gulf Stream, and Ocean Ridge.
Mail‑in ballots that voters request must be returned in person by 7 p.m. on election day. Ballots that arrive after that time are not tabulated, and a postmark of the return date does not satisfy the deadline. Early voting, which ended Sunday, saw 1,906 voters, while 6,332 mail ballots had been received by mid‑afternoon Monday.
Turnout in special elections is often low, and early data shows only about 8 % of the district’s registered voters have participated by Monday afternoon. The district leans Democratic, with 39.3 % of voters registered with that party; 30.5 % are Republican, and 29.3 % are unaffiliated. In the 2024 presidential election, the district gave 54.6 % of its vote to Rep. Harris and 44.2 % to Rep. Trump.
Voters can confirm registration, district eligibility, and polling locations online at votepalmbeach.gov or by calling 561‑656‑6200. The winner will take office immediately, with the next Florida legislative session beginning in five weeks.