Early voting far outpaces 2022 midterms, with sharp gains in Senate battleground states

Over 43 million ballots had been cast nationwide, either at early voting sites or by mail, with five days left before Election Day, according to an Associated Press analysis published by the Baltimore Banner. That total is almost 10 million higher than at the comparable point in 2022.

The AP found the biggest jumps in states with tight Senate contests. Texas had logged upward of 6.3 million early ballots by Wednesday, up from 4.2 million at that stage of the last midterm, a 50% gain. Maine, Michigan, North Carolina and Kansas each saw advance turnout rise by more than 30%, the analysis showed.

South Carolina posted an 83% increase, according to the AP. The state is filling open seats for governor and U.S. Senate; the AP report said the Senate race will pick a successor to the late Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham.

WYFF 4 reported that the South Carolina Election Commission had tallied roughly 900,000 early votes, a count that could near one million by the end of early voting. Commission Director Conway Belangia told the station turnout was strong statewide and that Election Day lines could be long. "So just be patient and stay in line," he said.

Among states that track party registration, the AP counted roughly 6.8 million Democrats and 5.2 million Republicans as early voters. The AP cautioned that these figures are incomplete and reveal nothing about vote choice. This year's data spans 47 states plus the District of Columbia, compared with 48 states plus the District in 2022.

The Banner noted that the midterms will settle which party controls Congress. Republicans currently lead both chambers, including the Senate by 53 to 47, midway through President Donald Trump's second term.

In Kentucky, figures released Friday by Secretary of State Michael Adams showed 95,645 Democrats had cast early ballots through Thursday, close to three times the 2022 figure, WKYT reported. Republicans accounted for 83,726 early ballots, over twice the earlier midterm count, and independents rose about threefold to 12,579.

In Omaha, WOWT reported lengthy lines outside the Douglas County Election Commission. Danielle Jensen of the commission told the station the office had a record day with over 1,340 people voting in person. She said in-person turnout was 8,700 above four years earlier, while requests for mail ballots dropped by about 9,500. "I just have seen a switch from early voting by mail to in person," Jensen said.

Michigan, where voters authorized statewide early in-person voting in a November 2022 ballot measure, is holding its first midterm under that system. The state has seen about 409,000 additional early ballots compared with 2022, a 32% rise, the AP reported.

Compiled by True News from reporting by WYFF 4, Baltimore Banner, WOWT and WKYT. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/631