As polling places opened Monday in some of Florida's biggest counties, Gov. Rick Scott said early voting would be crucial to winning.
Residents in Miami-Dade, Broward, Orange, Pinellas and Duval can vote in-person. Other counties will open early voting sites on Oct. 23 and Oct. 25.
The ballot includes the governor's race and Amendment 2, which asks voters to consider legalizing marijuana for medicinal purposes.
The general election is Nov. 4.
Democratic candidate for governor Charlie Crist and his wife, Carole, cast ballots in Crist's hometown of St. Petersburg on Monday morning. Crist arrived to the supervisor of elections office in downtown St. Petersburg and was greeted by dozens of supporters holding signs and cheering.
One woman handed Crist a small fan in reference to last week's gubernatorial debate between Crist and Scott. The debate was delayed when Scott didn't take stage because Crist had a portable fan plugged in below his lectern. The rules said no electronic devices were allowed.
"Like a cool breeze," Crist deadpanned, aiming the tiny fan at a couple of women.
Crist and Scott fought over Crist's use of the fan, delaying the start of the debate for several minutes as Crist stood on the stage alone. The unscripted moment made the rounds on various TV comedy and news shows.
Scott and Crist are neck-to-neck in polls and have a final debate Tuesday.
Scott gave an early-morning address to about 50 supporters at a seafood restaurant in Orlando. The restaurant was picked because of its proximity to an early-voting site at a nearby library.
Scott said GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney lost in 2012 because not enough Republicans participated in early voting.
Scott added that he wasn't going to let that happen again.
"It's important to get the vote out," Scott said. "In 2010, we won because people showed up."