Donald and Melania Trump vote near Mar-a-Lago ahead of Election Night party in West Palm Beach

(This story was updated to add new information.)

Former President Donald Trump voted on Election Day at the Morton and Barbara Mandel Recreation Center on Seaview Avenue in Palm Beach.

He was joined by his wife, former first lady Melania Trump.

Their son, Barron Trump, was not seen with them at the polling location, and it's unclear where he voted. An email to the Trump campaign for comment was not returned by Tuesday afternoon.

Trump is running as a Republican for a second term in the White House, with his vice presidential candidate U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, against Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. 

Speaking for more than 10 minutes with members of the media gathered inside the Recreation Center's gymnasium, Trump said he felt that this was the best of his three campaigns for president.

"I think we're going to have a very big victory today," he said.

The No. 1 issue for voters, Trump said, was immigration.

"We want people to come into our country, but they have to come in legally," he said. "We want strong borders."

Asked if he would discourage violence from his supporters, Trump denounced the question.

"My supporters are not violent people. I don't have to tell them that," he said, adding, "I certainly don't want any violence but I certainly — these are great people. These are people that believe in no violence. Unlike your question. You believe in violence," he told the reporter.

Trump said he and Melania Trump would head next to his campaign's offices in West Palm Beach to thank workers there, before returning to Mar-a-Lago.

Trump said he had not yet written a speech for Tuesday night, noting that he delivered several speeches within the past two days as he packed last-minute rallies into his late-campaign schedule.

"We did a lot of speeches. You can probably tell," he said, referring to the hoarseness in his voice. "I'm not a Democrat. I'm able to make a speech on pretty quick notice. If I win, I know what I'm gonna say. And I don't even want to think about the losing part."

Trump reminded Republicans who may be in line to vote, to stay in line.

Security around the Recreation Center on Tuesday morning was tight, with a public parking lot on Royal Palm Way closed ahead of Trump’s arrival and a row of white tents forming a tunnel from that parking lot to the south entrance to the polling location. 

More: Palm Beach church where Trump married to have Election Day prayer services

Town officials had said in a Recreation Department email Friday that parking would be limited Monday at the municipal parking lot on the north side of Royal Palm Way near Seaview Park next to the Recreation Center, and that the parking lot would be completely closed on Tuesday until mid-afternoon.

It wasn’t clear in the days leading up to Election Day exactly when Trump and his family would vote, so members of the media gathered early Tuesday outside the Recreation Center to try to catch a glimpse of the Republican nominee for president. Media representatives included those from India, Portugal, Germany, Denmark and Japan.

While Trump was inside the Recreation Center, the media kept cameras trained on the north entrance to the facility.

Many of Trump’s supporters, who gathered and waited for hours Tuesday morning waiting to catch a glimpse of the candidate, lined the sidewalk. Some sat on a wall outside Palm Beach Public Elementary School, while others waited near the Recreation Center's tennis courts. Some tennis players paused their games for more than an hour while waiting for Trump to appear.

Trump did not come out to wave to and speak with the media, as he did in past years. Instead, he was quickly ushered from his motorcade into the Recreation Center through the south entrance on Royal Palm Way, on the opposite side of the polling place from where hundreds gathered. The Trumps then left through the south entrance after speaking with reporters in the gymnasium. Some on the Recreation Center’s north lawn caught a glimpse of Trump’s silhouette through a window.

Voters who needed to cast ballots Tuesday were able to enter through the north side of the Recreation Center. A trio of parking spaces on Seaview Avenue were marked with signs and traffic barricades as 30-minute spots for voters only. 

Many of the other spaces along Seaview were occupied by the media. 

The Trumps planned to wait at Mar-a-Lago until about 10 p.m. Tuesday before heading to the Trump campaign’s Election Night watch party at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach.

Kristina Webb is a reporter for Palm Beach Daily News, part of the Paste BN Florida Network. You can reach her at kwebb@pbdailynews.com. Subscribe today to support our journalism.