Early Voting Has Already Exceeded That of 2016 Election With One Week Still to Go

The election is now 8 days away and already more votes have been cast this year than the total number of ballots cast during early voting in 2016. So far more than 58.7 million Americans have voted this year nationwide. During the 2016 election, only around 58.3 million pre-election ballots were received. Several key swing states are also among those who have far exceeded their numbers when compared to four years ago. Texas, who saw 4.3 million in 2016, is now reporting 7.1 million cast as of yesterday. Similar scenes have been witnessed in Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, Florida and more. These massive voter turnout numbers can most likely be attributed to law changes allowing for easier access to early voting during the pandemic. It may also be due in part to heightened interest in this year’s election. It appears younger voters are casting significantly more early ballots this year while those who are ages 65 or older are actually seeing a decline.