On July 20, Florida locked its voter rolls for the last big primary of 2026. For 3,324,324 Floridians registered with no party — including, by IVA's estimate, roughly 650,000 independent veterans — the August 18 primary will now happen without them.
Every dot is one Florida county, sized by its active registered voters — 13,426,540 as of the state's June 30 file. On August 18 they hold the primaries that pick both parties' nominees for governor, Congress, and the legislature.
Shrink each county to just its No Party Affiliation voters and 3,324,324 Floridians remain — 24.8% of the rolls. Florida's primaries are fully closed: registering independent means no ballot on August 18. Miami-Dade alone holds 390,566 of them.
Now the same counties sized by their veterans — 1,327,071 across Florida, 7.4% of all adults. The Panhandle glows: Florida's 1st district is the most veteran-dense congressional district in America (15.9% of adults).
Apply IVA's 49% independent share and an estimated 650,262 of those veterans are independents — people who wore the uniform of a democracy whose primary door is closed to them at home.
On July 20, Florida law closed the registration books — and with them, under Fla. Stat. §97.055(1)(c), locked every voter's party affiliation for the primary. 3,324,324 no-party Floridians — including, by IVA's estimate, roughly 650,000 independent veterans — now watch the last big primary of 2026 from outside the door.