Orange County, Florida: County Guide

Orange County is the most populated county in the Central Florida region, with Orlando and 12 other towns and cities, and its government works from the County Administration Building on South Rosalind Avenue in downtown Orlando.

Orange County Government describes the county as home to more than 1.43 million residents and more than 75 million visitors a year, which it calls the top tourism destination in the world (About Orange County). The same page points to the county's international airport, its convention center and its theme parks.

The County Administration Building at 201 S. Rosalind Ave. houses the County Mayor's office and the Board of County Commissioners office on the fifth floor, and the commission chambers on the first floor (Orange County BCC directory entry). That building is in Orlando, the seat of county government.

Higher education is part of the Orange County profile too. The county lists the University of Central Florida, with 13 colleges and an enrollment of more than 70,000 students, and Rollins College, the oldest college in Florida (About Orange County). For outdoor space, Orange County operates more than 109 parks, trails and facilities, including 12 recreation centers, six splash pads, 10 dog parks and 11 public boat ramps, on nearly 15,000 acres.

Orange County holds 13 towns and cities: Apopka, Bay Lake, Belle Isle, Eatonville, Edgewood, Lake Buena Vista, Maitland, Oakland, Ocoee, Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden and Winter Park (About Orange County).

Orange County governs itself under its own charter, which the county says puts it in charge of its own affairs with an independence that puts citizens first, and Orange County voters have a chance to amend that charter every four years on any special, primary or general election ballot (Orange County Board of County Commissioners). Orange County 311 provides general information about Orange County Government services (Orange County 311).

The Census Bureau estimated 1,471,937 Orange County residents in its 2020-2024 American Community Survey, and their median age was 36.6.

Residents aged 65 and up made up only 13.0 percent of Orange County, while people of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 33.8 percent (ACS DP05, Orange County). Roughly one Orange County resident in four, 24.3 percent, was born abroad, and 38.5 percent of people age 5 and up use a language besides English at home (ACS DP02, Orange County).

Orange County households had a median income of $79,719, and the mean travel time to work was 28.0 minutes (ACS DP03, Orange County). The county counted 586,805 homes; owners lived in 56.8 percent of the occupied ones, owner-occupied homes had a median value of $390,100, and renters paid a median of $1,775 a month (ACS DP04, Orange County).

One figure on the county's own pages is out of date. The About Orange County page still says the county is home to more than 1.43 million residents (About Orange County), while the Census Bureau's latest 5-year Orange County estimate is 1,471,937, so the county's round number trails the federal one by roughly 40,000 people.

Orange County is governed by a seven-member county commission made up of Mayor Jerry Demings, who is elected countywide, and six commissioners elected from single-member districts.

All seven members of the Orange County board serve four-year terms (Orange County Board of County Commissioners). The mayor and the commissioners for districts 2, 4 and 6 are elected in the cycle that includes 2014, 2018, 2022 and 2026, while districts 1, 3 and 5 are elected in presidential election years, most recently 2024. That means the Orange County mayor's seat and three commission seats are on the 2026 ballot.

Under the Orange County Charter, the County Mayor is the chief executive: the mayor oversees day-to-day operations, sets the agenda for and chairs Board of County Commissioner meetings, and submits the annual budget (Orange County Mayor directory entry). The mayor's office is at 201 S. Rosalind Ave., 5th Floor, Orlando, 407-836-7370. The Board of County Commissioners office shares the floor at 407-836-7350, and the board meets on selected Tuesdays at 9 a.m. in the first-floor chambers (Orange County BCC directory entry).

For everyday questions, Orange County 311 is the front door: residents dial 311 or 407-836-3111 on weekdays between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. and on Saturday and Sunday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. to file designated service requests or get general information about Orange County Government services (Orange County 311).

The Orange County Property Appraiser, Tax Collector and Supervisor of Elections each run their own office and phone line, apart from the County Administration Building.

The Orange County Property Appraiser sets values and handles exemptions; the homestead exemption reduces the taxable value of a homestead property by up to $50,000, and the office lists 407-836-5205 for residential assessment questions (Orange County Property Appraiser).

Tax Collector Scott Randolph runs the Orange County offices for tags, titles, driver licenses and property tax payments, and the offices are open to Orange County residents only (Orange County Tax Collector). Road tests are available at five Orange County offices through the Orange Osceola Safety Institute, with a $45 fee for the appointment. A tip from the same page: private tag agencies in the county handle tag and title work only, not driver licenses or ID cards, and charge additional fees.

The Florida Division of Elections lists Karen Castor Dentel as Orange County Supervisor of Elections at 119 West Kaley Street, Orlando, phone 407-836-2070, with the office website at voteorangefl.gov (Florida Division of Elections, Orange County). The state directory is the record to check when an Orange County voter guide or mailer names a different supervisor.

The 2026 General Election is the next big date for these offices: the Orange County Supervisor of Elections lists early voting from October 19 at 8 a.m. through November 1 at 8 p.m., and asks voters to request a vote-by-mail ballot for the 2026 General Election by October 22 (Orange County Supervisor of Elections).

Last verified: October 15, 2026, on the Orange County Government website.

Orange County sends storm alerts through the OCAlert System, which sends time-sensitive messages by text, email or phone about severe weather, road closures and evacuations.

The county's emergency information page gathers Orange County shelter guidance, including which items to bring to a shelter, guidance for residents with special medical needs on finding a safe shelter, and a short guide to when to call 911 and when to call 311 during weather emergencies (Orange County emergency information). The Orange County Office of Emergency Management can be reached at 311 or 407-836-3111, by email at [email protected], or by mail at P.O. Box 5879, Winter Park.

Flood insurance carries a discount through the county's floodplain program: FEMA lists Orange County (community 120179) at Community Rating System class 5, worth 25 percent off premiums inside the special flood hazard area and 10 percent outside it, with flood maps in effect since September 24, 2021 (FEMA NFIP community status, Orange County).

After a storm passes, the Orange County emergency page points residents to storm recovery assistance and invites local businesses to register as debris cleanup subcontractors with the county's federally bid debris contractors (Orange County emergency information). The same page still advertises a Hurricane Milton disaster loan window that closed on April 27, 2025, so that link is out of date. For hurricane season in the city itself, the Orlando weather and safety sections carry the detail.

The Digital Towns Orlando guide is the deep library for Orlando, the seat of Orange County government, and this county page is the starting point for the other 12 Orange County towns.

Its Orlando sections run from the theme parks, sports, landmarks and places to see, through schools, healthcare, utilities and real estate, to city government, demographics, the economy, industries, events, history, the environment, weather, safety, parks and recreation. Apopka, Winter Park, Winter Garden, Ocoee, Maitland and the other Orange County municipalities have no Digital Towns guide of their own yet.