Florida GOP voters won't be alone on March 19. 4 other states also head to polls

Cheryl McCloud, USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida
·4 min read

Florida's first election day of 2024 is coming up, although only Republican voters will have a choice in the election.

The presidential preference primary, known as the PPP, gives voters of the major political parties — Democrats and Republicans — the opportunity to vote for the presidential candidate they want to represent their party in the November general election.

Florida voters won't be alone in heading to the polls March 19. The date is an election day in four other states.

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But before then, several other states will hold their presidential primaries and caucuses, including the home state of GOP candidate Nikki Haley, who faces off again with former president Donald Trump.

Here are the primaries coming up by state, as provided by the Federal Election Commission, and information on Florida's presidential preference primary.

Presidential primaries held in January

Presidential primaries, caucus scheduled for February

  • South Carolina: Feb. 3 (Democrats)

  • Nevada: Feb. 6

  • Nevada: Feb. 8 (Republican Caucus)

  • South Carolina: Feb. 24 (Republicans)

  • Michigan: Feb. 27

2 GOP candidates left in 2024 race: Only 2 GOP candidates remain in the presidential race. How does this compare to years past?

Presidential primaries, caucuses coming in March

  • Idaho: March 2 (Republican Caucus)

  • Missouri: March 2 (Republican Caucus)

  • North Dakota: March 4 (Republican Caucus)

  • Alabama: March 5

  • Arkansas: March 5

  • California: March 5

  • Colorado: March 5

  • Iowa: March 5 (Democratic Caucus)

  • Maine: March 5

  • Massachusetts: March 5

  • Minnesota: March 5

  • North Carolina: March 5

  • Oklahoma: March 5

  • Tennessee: March 5

  • Texas: March 5

  • Utah: March 5 (Democrats)

  • Utah: March 5 (Republican Caucus)

  • Vermont: March 5

  • Virginia: March 5

  • Georgia: March 12

  • Hawaii: March 12 (Republican Caucus)

  • Mississippi: March 12

  • Washington: March 12

  • Arizona: March 19

  • Florida: March 19

  • Illinois: March 19

  • Kansas: March 19

  • Ohio: March 19

  • Louisiana: March 23

  • Missiouri: March 23 (Democrats)

Presidential primaries and caucus coming in April

  • Connecticut: April 2

  • Delaware: April 2

  • New York: April 2

  • Rhode Island: April 2

  • Wisconsin: April 2

  • Alaska: April 6

  • Hawaii: April 6 (Democrats)

  • North Dakota: April 6 (Democrats)

  • Wyoming: April 13 (Democratic Caucus)

  • Pennsylvania: April 23

Presidential primaries and caucus coming in May

  • Indiana: May 7

  • Maryland: May 14

  • Nebraska: May 14

  • West Virginia: May 14

  • Kentucky: May 21

  • Oregon: May 21

  • Idaho: May 23 (Democratic Caucus)

Presidential primaries coming in June

  • Washington, D.C.: June 4

  • Montana: June 4

  • New Jersey: June 4

  • New Mexico: June 4

  • South Dakota: June 4

March is a busy month for primaries and caucuses. When is 2024 Super Tuesday?

Voters in states over more than half the U.S. will head to the polls in March for either a presidential primary or caucus, according to the Federal Election Commission.

March 5, also called Super Tuesday, is the biggest date, with voters in 16 states heading to the polls, followed by five states on March 19 — including Florida — and four states on March 12.

What's the difference between a primary and a caucus?

Most states hold primaries six to nine months before a presidential election.

Voters choose their candidate anonymously when they cast their ballots. The state where the primary is held takes the results of the vote into account to award delegates to the winners, according to USA.gov.

Some states hold caucuses instead of an election.

"Caucuses are meetings run by political parties that are held at the county, district, or precinct level. Some caucuses choose candidates by secret ballot. Others require participants to divide themselves into groups according to the candidate they support.

"Each candidate’s group gives speeches and tries to get others to join their group. At the end, the number of delegates given to each candidate is based on the number of caucus votes they received, according to USA.gov.

Who will vote in the March 19 Florida presidential preference primary?

Only registered Republicans will vote in Florida's presidential preference primary on March 19.

Sample ballot for Florida's presidential preference primary

Can't see the sample ballot? Open in a new browser.

What happens after the presidential preference primary?

After the PPP, the decision over who will represent the party goes to delegates.

Political party delegates nominate the preferred presidential candidates at each party’s national convention.

The party then decides at the convention which presidential candidate will represent their party on the November general election ballot.

Why won't Democrats vote in the Florida presidential preference primary?

The Florida Democratic Party nominated Joseph R. Biden Jr. as its only candidate and chose him for this November's ballot last year, so there will be no presidential preference ballot for voters registered with the Democratic Party.

More Florida election dates in 2024

  • Primary election: Aug. 20

  • General election: Nov. 5

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Florida presidential primary March 19. US primary, caucus schedule