2020 Election

[GMDino]

https://www.newsweek.com/over-860000-americans-have-already-voted-compared-fewer-10000-this-point-2016-1534452

Quote:Over 860,000 Americans Have Already Voted, Compared to Fewer Than 10,000 by This Point in 2016

BY JOCELYN GRZESZCZAK ON 9/26/20 AT 1:31 PM EDT

More than 860,000 Americans have already cast their vote in the 2020 election—a number much higher than the reported 9,525 votes that were returned at this point in 2016.

At least 866,734 people have voted in this year's election as of September 26, according to the U.S. Elections Project, which is run by University of Florida political science professor Michael McDonald. The number is based on 25 states whose early voting data is available, meaning it does not convey the entire picture.

"These states are those where I have current data on mail ballot activity," McDonald wrote in a blog post Saturday morning. "More states will be added as state reports become available."

Still, the large number is a sign of Americans' excitement for the upcoming election, as well as an increased commitment to voting early fueled by the coronavirus pandemic and concern over U.S. Postal Service delays.

Numbers gathered by McDonald in 2016 highlight just how different this election cycle may be than the previous one. For the week ending September 25, 2016, 9,525 people had voted early, according to the reporting states and localities.



While it is important to note that this number is only an estimate and could've been higher depending on whether McDonald had access to more states' data, the difference of more than 850,000 votes from this time in 2016 is astonishing.

As McDonald acknowledged in a blog post written at the time, the pace of early voting will naturally increase as Election Day draws nearer and more people finalize their choices. Just one week later—on October 2, 2016—at least 78,836 people had cast their ballot early in the reporting states, McDonald found. By October 16, 2016, that number had increased even further to be around 1.4 million voters.

Newsweek contacted McDonald for comment, but did not hear back in time for publication.