Vote by Mail

Vote by mail (VBM) data shows which voters have requested mail ballots, when ballots were sent, and whether they’ve been returned. Use this data to build ballot follow-up audiences or apply individual and household exclusions in Targeting.

VBM data is not public information. To access it, your campaign must first register with the Florida Division of Elections, then request access in your campaign settings where we will verify your eligibility.

How it works

The Florida Division of Elections publishes daily VBM reports during election periods. Neurelect ingests this data and matches it to your voter file, so you can review the latest imported mail-ballot activity. Reporting and import delays mean this is not a live ballot-status feed.

Elections appear in your VBM panel when vote by mail reporting is active for that election.

Note: Voters who moved or registered since the last monthly file update may appear in VBM data but not the voter file—they won’t show in demographic filters or household exclusions. To include them, skip targeting filters and filter by VBM status only in your export.

VBM status codes

Each voter’s VBM record has a status indicating where they are in the mail ballot process:

Filtering options

For each election with VBM data, you can choose from five filtering actions:

Per-election status filters

You can further refine your filter by specific VBM statuses. For example, to target only voters whose ballots haven’t been returned yet:

1. Select Only for the election
2. Open the status filter
3. Select Requested and Provided statuses
4. This targets voters who requested ballots but haven’t returned them yet

Common use cases

Ballot chase

Target voters who have requested mail ballots but haven’t returned them yet. These voters are likely to vote but may need a reminder.

1. Find the election in the VBM panel
2. Select Only to target VBM voters
3. Open the status filter and select Requested and Provided
4. Export your list for phone or text outreach

Exclude VBM voters from canvassing

When building walk lists, exclude voters who have already returned their ballots—there’s no need to knock on their doors.

1. Select Exclude for the election
2. Select Ballot Returned if your intention is to exclude reported returns, rather than all matching VBM requests
3. Review the targeting audience; account for in-person early voting separately

Exclude entire households

If any household member has a VBM request, you may want to skip the entire household for door-to-door canvassing. This also excludes people at that address who may still need outreach. Choose it only when you intend to skip the address as a whole.

1. Select Exclude Household for the election
2. Review the selected statuses and the result: voters at addresses matching the household exclusion are removed from the targeting audience

Data timing

VBM data is published daily during active election periods. Reports typically reflect activity through the previous day, though exact timing depends on county reporting schedules.

Check back regularly during VBM periods for the most current data.

Keep requests, returns, and list membership separate

A request is not a returned ballot. Use the election’s status selections to define which activity matters for your task. No matching record does not prove that a voter has not voted; the latest report may not yet reflect recent activity.

VBM filters change the targeting audience. They do not automatically remove voters from an existing saved list or packet. Rerun the criteria and review membership before a new outreach round. A downloaded file also retains the data from when it was generated.

For in-person turnout, use Early Voting. For how saved membership works, see Voter Lists.