For owners
Look for candidates who listen, prepare, work with others, and understand the responsibility of serving the entire association. Ask about their priorities and approach to oversight.
Board leadership
Choosing the people who govern
An election gives owners the opportunity to choose directors who will oversee the association’s finances, maintenance, contracts, and decisions. Preparing well matters as much as counting accurately.
For candidates
Describe your experience, availability, and practical goals. Explain how you would work with fellow directors, professional advisers, and owners.
The standard Florida election timeline
Under §718.112, regular elections occur on the annual meeting date:
- At least 60 days before: send first election notice.
- At least 40 days before: receive written candidate intent.
- At least 35 days before: receive optional candidate information sheets.
- 14–34 days before: send second notice and ballots; include timely requested candidate sheets.
Election quorum is unnecessary, but at least 20% of eligible voters must cast ballots. Winners are determined by plurality. Proxies generally cannot elect directors. No contested election is required when candidates do not exceed vacancies.
Eligibility review includes delinquent assessments, specified criminal or regulatory disqualifications, co-owner restrictions, and the eight-year consecutive-service limit and its exceptions. Eligibility must exist at the candidate deadline.
Election challenges must begin within 60 days after results are announced. Associations of 10 or fewer units may adopt authorized alternative procedures.
Confirm governing documents and applicable exceptions with the election administrator.
Florida Statutes §718.112 →How paper ballots protect secrecy
Owner instructions
- Complete the ballot following its instructions.
- Place one ballot in an inner envelope and seal it.
- Put that inside the outer envelope and seal it.
- Provide voter name, unit identification, and signature on the outer envelope.
- Return it in time to be received before polls close.
Counting safeguards
An impartial committee checks outer envelopes against the qualified-voter list. Current directors, officers, candidates, and their spouses cannot serve on that committee.
After verification, separate inner envelopes from identifying outer envelopes before counting publicly. An inner envelope with multiple ballots is disregarded. Polls close when the first outer envelope is opened.
Keep counted and disregarded ballots and envelopes for at least one year. Follow the complete rule for duplicate submissions, envelope defects, ties, and any advance verification meeting.
Supplementary guidance: DBPR Election Monitor Overview & Training (March 2026). This URL now serves monitor training material; use current law if an agency summary differs. The rule page could not be retrieved during this review; before issuing instructions, consult Rule 61B-23.0021 and the statute.
A practical election planning checklist
Confirm the seats
List expiring terms and seats to be filled. Review staggered terms, eligibility, and document provisions before announcing the election.
Assign the work
Identify who prepares notices, receives submissions, maintains the roster, answers procedural questions, and coordinates election day.
Track each deadline
Record receipt dates for candidate materials and completion dates for notices. Keep a calendar with a second person checking critical tasks.
Review the packet
Check names, seats, return instructions, envelopes, and candidate materials before distribution. Keep official election communications neutral.
Prepare the room
Arrange a visible counting area, voter check-in, spare supplies, and a secure place for returned materials. Brief helpers on their assigned roles.
Document the outcome
Record results and organize the supporting materials. Arrange director orientation and a clear transition of outstanding work.
Online voting and emailed ballots are different
Section 718.128 distinguishes an adopted online voting system from ballots sent to a designated email address. An informal survey or ordinary email reply is not automatically a valid ballot.
Adopted online system
Subsections (1)–(6) address the resolution, owner consent, identity verification, ballot integrity, and secrecy safeguards. Confirm authorization and owner instructions before using a platform.
Designated email route
Unless online voting has been adopted under those provisions, subsection (7) requires a designated address for electronically transmitted ballots. Compliant ballots must be counted. Required fields, the prescribed prominent secrecy-waiver statement, receipt deadline, and mailbox review matter.
Use the complete statutory instructions.
Have counsel or the administrator prepare the ballot and required waiver text directly from the statute. Owners choose whether to waive secrecy; this summary is not a ballot form. An owner’s email ballot is also different from a director voting by email on board business.
Read §718.128 in full and see directors and email.
Keep a complete, usable election file
Assign a custodian, control access to returned voting materials, and preserve the supporting evidence. Do not rely only on an announcement of the winners.
| Stage | What to organize |
|---|---|
| Planning | Seats and terms, applicable provisions, approved calendar, assigned administrator, roster preparation, and eligibility review documentation. |
| Notices and candidates | Final notices, delivery evidence, candidate intent receipt dates, information sheets, ballot instructions, and the distributed packet. |
| Voting | Custody and receipt procedures, impartial committee assignments, paper and electronic records, and documentation of how duplicate or disputed submissions were handled. |
| Outcome | Tally, results announced and announcement date, counted and disregarded materials, minutes, unresolved issues, and follow-up. |
Keep membership quorum separate from the election participation minimum; see quorum requirements. Use the deadline tracker and records-access guide. Confirm retention by category and preserve materials longer when a hold or dispute requires it.
If challenged: preserve originals and relevant electronic records, record the issue factually, and contact association counsel promptly. Do not assume a DBPR complaint or informal recount preserves an election-challenge deadline.
After the results: turn an election into a working board
- Confirm the next proceedings. Identify when new terms begin and properly notice any organizational board meeting. Election as a director does not automatically assign every officer position.
- Transfer records and open work. Use the new board member operating checklist and orientation guide.
- Update contacts and authorized access. Follow the post-election checklist for management records, UCO representation, authorized accounts, and emergency contacts.
- Track education. Review director certification and retain completion evidence.
UCO elections and appointments are separate.
This page addresses condominium association director elections. Use UCO delegate voting guidance and current UCO governing documents for that organization’s process. Updating an association’s board does not by itself update every UCO appointment or representation form.
Related resources
- Annual owner meeting →
Coordinate the meeting and election while keeping their counts separate.
- Quorum requirements →
Distinguish board, membership, and election participation.
- Association committees →
Clarify election assistance and impartial roles.
- Clear minutes →
Preserve decisions and outcomes with the appropriate meeting identity.
- Unfilled board vacancies →
Plan for remaining vacancies through the correct process.
- Annual operations calendar →
Assign election preparation and transition responsibilities.
Florida law governs statutory election duties. Governing documents may add requirements or supply authorized alternatives. Contracts assign management services, and UCO procedures govern separate UCO tasks. The file checklist and handoff workflow are Board Synergy recommended practices.
Questions boards often ask
Can we vote electronically?
Online voting and emailed ballots have different statutory procedures. Review the two electronic routes below before issuing instructions. Have the administrator reconcile paper and electronic submissions under the applicable rules without double counting.
Review electronic voting law →What if something goes wrong?
Preserve the materials and seek prompt advice. Ask for a documented explanation of the issue and the correct remedy. Avoid improvising a recount or replacement election without reviewing the applicable procedure.
Legal advice for associations →Does the election fill every vacancy?
Separate expiring terms from resignations, recalls, and other vacancies. The reason a seat is open matters when determining how it should be filled.
Board resignations and vacancies →What should new directors do next?
Review responsibilities, training, finances, ongoing projects, and access to records. A deliberate handover helps the new board start with useful information.
Board certification →
Board Synergy Club · Watch & learn
Elections
Well-organized elections help owners participate and support a clear transition between boards. Use this video as a discussion resource while considering election planning, notices, candidate information, voting procedures, ballot handling, and preservation of election records. Identify questions early so the association can obtain appropriate guidance before deadlines arrive.
Education, not an individual decision. This externally hosted video is offered as a discussion resource; its contents have not been independently verified for this webpart. Have management and qualified Florida counsel confirm the current requirements, applicable deadlines, governing documents, candidate eligibility, and voting procedures for the actual election. This webpart does not resolve a disputed ballot, certify an election result, or provide a complete election notice or challenge procedure. An embedded video does not establish official UCO or WPRF policy.
Plan early. Follow clear procedures. Build owner confidence.
Board Synergy Club · Watch & learn
Elections
Planning ahead helps owners understand how to participate and gives the association time to prepare. Use this BrainyBoard program as a discussion resource while considering election notices, candidate information, voter eligibility, voting procedures, ballot handling, and records preservation. Discuss how management and the board can assign tasks, track confirmed deadlines, and prepare for an orderly transition.
ElectionsWatch on BrainyBoard ↗This program opens on BrainyBoard. Access is subject to the provider’s current sign-in and viewing requirements.
Education, not an individual decision. This externally hosted program is offered as a discussion resource; its contents have not been independently verified for this webpart. Program information may reflect requirements or practices in effect when recorded and may address association types with different rules. Have management and qualified Florida counsel confirm current law, governing documents, applicable deadlines, candidate and voter eligibility, voting methods, and procedures for the actual election. This webpart does not decide a disputed ballot, certify an election result, or provide a complete notice or challenge process. Viewing the program does not by itself establish required director education credit. An embedded video does not establish official UCO or WPRF policy.
Plan ahead. Support participation. Preserve the record.
Board Synergy Club · Watch & learn
Voting
Clear voting procedures help participants understand the decision being made and how the result will be recorded. Use this BrainyBoard program as a discussion resource while considering voter eligibility, quorum, approval thresholds, ballots, proxies where applicable, and accurate meeting records. Keep director votes, owner votes, and community-organization votes distinct rather than assuming one procedure fits every decision.
VotingWatch on BrainyBoard ↗This program opens on BrainyBoard. Access is subject to the provider’s current sign-in and viewing requirements.
Education, not an individual decision. This externally hosted program is offered as a discussion resource; its contents have not been independently verified for this webpart. Program information may reflect requirements or practices in effect when recorded and may address association types with different rules. Have management and qualified Florida counsel confirm current law, governing documents, the meeting and motion type, eligible voters, quorum, approval denominator, and permitted voting methods before relying on a procedure. This webpart does not determine that a particular motion passed or failed or certify an election result. Viewing the program does not by itself establish required director education credit. An embedded video does not establish official UCO or WPRF policy.
Clarify the question. Confirm the procedure. Record the result.
Build confidence through consistent administration
Offer procedural information to all owners, answer questions consistently, and leave a clear record of what happened. Elections work best when the community can understand the process without relying on informal assurances.
Related resources
Educational overview for Florida residential condominium associations. Updated October 17, 2026. Key election and electronic-ballot provisions checked against official Florida statutes. Rule 61B-23.0021 remains linked for administrator review; its page was unavailable during this update. Current statutes, administrative rules, and governing documents control; consult the association’s attorney for a disputed election or uncertain procedure.