We’re just six weeks out from the election and early, in-person voting is now underway in three states.
Voters in Minnesota, South Carolina and Virginia began casting their ballots on Friday. About a dozen more will follow suit by mid-October. Americans who requested mail-in ballots should also start checking their mailboxes this week.
Early voting has become increasingly popular in recent years. According to data from MIT’s election data science lab, almost 70% of votes cast during the 2020 election were done through mail-in ballots or early in-person voting with COVID-19 being a major factor.
That number dropped to 50% in the 2022 midterms, which despite being lower than 2020 is still significantly higher than years past.
Likewise, analysts expect a large number of early voters this election cycle.