Record number of eligible voters cast ballots early ahead of US midterms

Context for the record

The University of Florida collects and publishes the figures cited. They quantify the votes cast so far and make it possible to compare them with the 2022 record without anticipating the final result.

In addition to most Democrats, the analyzed reports also mentioned the states of South Carolina and North Carolina, as well as Iowa and the Swedish town of Kansa. The regional data cited account for only part of the information used to determine the nationwide total.

Donald Trump was also the subject of the reports. The cancellations of public appearances by the 80-year-old US president sparked speculation about his health. However, the verified information contains no confirmed explanation for the cancellations.

More open questions until election day

More eligible voters can cast early ballots before Tuesday’s election. The available facts do not currently indicate how many early votes each state has registered or how the figures will develop through election day.

Early voting is an important indicator of turnout. Particularly in US midterm elections, a high level of voting before the official election date may indicate that more people will vote than in previous midterms.

The data refer to a snapshot as of Friday noon local time. Final figures may therefore differ from the approximately 47.9 million votes cast, particularly if large numbers of people continue to vote early over the remaining days.

Implications for voter turnout

The record primarily concerns the number of votes cast, not the parties’ relative shares. The verified facts do not establish which candidates or parties the additional voters will support.

The election will be decided on Tuesday. More early votes are expected to be cast before then, while election authorities and the University of Florida continue to track and publish the figures.