Election Day live updates: What you need to know, even when the polls close

Posted

November 5, 2024 at 7:18 am EST

Robyn Beck

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AFP via Getty Images

Voters are increasingly choosing to cast their votes before Election Day if they have the opportunity to do so. And in this year's general election, more than 80 million Americans chose that option.

According to the information, around 44 million of these voters cast their ballots early in person and around 37 million by mail Early voting dates starting Monday at 8 p.m. ET, compiled by Michael McDonald at the University of Florida.

While the early in-person voting deadline has passed, the number of returned mail-in ballots will continue to increase – including after election day. Around 20 states plus Washington, DCAccept and count mail-in ballots received after Election Day – usually if they are postmarked on or before Election Day.

One of the more surprising patterns in early voting this year is the number of Republican voters casting their ballot early in person.

In the past, conservative voters have largely waited until Election Day to cast their ballots. In recent years, this has been fueled by the rhetoric of former President Donald Trump, who frequently vilified early voting and mail-in voting. However, Republicans worked to engage their voters in the run-up to this election more comfortable with early voting.

However, as expected, fewer people voted by mail compared to 2020.

The last presidential election, held in the midst of a pandemic, was unique in both overall turnout and voting methods, as several states expanded access to mail-in voting to avoid crowding at polling places.

In the years since the 2020 election, some states have restricted access to mail-in voting, while other states have made these pandemic-era voting changes permanent. The relative decline in access to mail voting is one reason why fewer people were expected to vote by mail this year.

All of these changes in voting methods make it difficult to predict overall voter turnout. McDonald wrote on his Substack On Monday, he announced that he expects the percentage of the U.S. eligible voter population who will actually vote this year to be somewhere between 2016 and 2020 turnout, at 64.7%.