Florida voters to decide new governor, senator, and amendments

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (FOX 35 WOFL) - Voters in Florida are electing a U.S. senator, a new governor and several new members of Congress while also deciding to whether approve 12 proposed changes to the state's constitution.

Polls opened Tuesday morning in Florida's Eastern time zone and will open one hour later in the western portion of the Florida Panhandle, which is in the Central time zone. Polls close at 7 p.m. local time.

The Governor's race is neck and neck between Ron DeSantis and Andrew Gillum. An average of all current polls by Real Clear Politics gives Andrew Gillum a four-point edge over Ron DeSantis for Governor. 

The choice between Florida Gov. Rick Scott and three-term incumbent Democrat Bill Nelson could help determine whether the U.S. Senate stays in Republican control. As of Tuesday morning, Senator Nelson has a three-point lead over Governor Scott in the Senate race. 

Voters also will have the chance to make some big decisions regarding some hotly contested issues on Election Day, as ballots feature 12 different constitutional amendments. You can read more about them HERE. 

Many voters took advantage of early voting, which ended Sunday. As of Monday morning, Democrats had a slight advantage of 2.06 million to 2.04 million in votes cast by mail or at early-voting sites. If you still have your mail-in ballot, you can bring it to the polling station and trade it in for a regular ballot.

If voting today, remember that you must bring your photo I.D. along with you. You can also bring your sample ballot with you to the voting booth if you need some help. Cell phones are even allowed, but no selfies. That does mean, however, that you can use your phone to make a last-minute decision when voting as long you do not take any pictures. 

For information on those running and the amendments you'll have to vote on, visit HERE.

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The Associated Press (AP) contributed to this report.