One third of Miami-Dade voters surveyed during the midterm election cycle reported experiencing at least one voting-related issue, according to a report from the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard published Wednesday by the broadcaster WLRN.
The study, based on 164 respondents from the county between August 23 and October 26, 2026, found that 32.9% of participants from Miami-Dade reported at least one of six monitored electoral issues, compared to 26.5% recorded nationally and 26.4% in Florida.
Before reading the data, it is important to keep in mind a key methodological warning: the sample is not representative of the county or its population as a whole. The respondents were recruited online, and the counties deemed to be at higher electoral risk were oversampled.
The report itself indicates that its findings should be interpreted as "signals that warrant greater attention or verification," not as estimates of the actual condition of the electoral administration.
The margin of error for the county figure is ±7.2 percentage points, which places the difference with the national rate within that margin.
That said, the two most common issues reported by respondents in Miami-Dade are particularly relevant in light of the elections next Tuesday, November 3: misleading calls, texts, or messages about the elections (19%, compared to the national average of 15.7%) and difficulties with electoral tasks such as verifying registration or requesting a mail-in ballot (17%, compared to the national average of 7.2%).
Other problems reported above the national average included intimidation or harassment (15.2% vs. 7.7%), contradictory information about registration (12.8% vs. 5.1%), discouragement from registering (12.7% vs. 3.8%), and notices of registration challenges (6.1% vs. 2.5%).
The phenomenon of misleading messages has a concrete and recent example in the county: an automated call from the Democratic super PAC Battleground Alliance against Congresswoman María Elvira Salazar, circulated on Wednesday, which PolitiFact rated as "largely accurate" but with significant omissions.
The age group that reported the most issues was those aged 25 to 44 (48.7%), while those over 65 reported the least (15.4%). Among Hispanic or Latino respondents, 34.2% indicated they had faced at least one problem.
"What this survey makes clear is that people can experience elections very differently from one community to another," said Allison Wan, senior data scientist at the Shorenstein Center.
"Our goal is to provide a more systematic and data-driven image of those local signals, so that election officials, journalists, and voters know where it may be worthwhile to pay closer attention," he stated.
The office of election supervisor Alina García responded that they have extended office hours during early voting. "The midterm elections and all the campaigns naturally create some confusion and concern among voters, but we have been very clear and timely in all our messages," stated a spokesperson.
Early voting in Miami-Dade is available until Sunday, November 1, from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., at 28 designated centers throughout the county.
Voters can verify their registration, review their sample ballot, and locate their polling place at votemiamidade.gov. Those who receive calls or messages that seem misleading can file a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) at fcc.gov or by calling 1-888-225-5322.
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