Early voting is underway in many states nationwide as the 2024 campaign is now in its final two weeks. Both parties are watching the trends closely.
As of early Oct. 23, more than 18.8 million voters nationwide have already cast their ballots, according to tracker TargetEarly by TargetSmart. Voters cast votes either with early or absentee ballots, depending on their home state’s rules.
Of those early voters, 9.3 million are registered Democrats, 7.9 million are registered Republicans and about 1.5 million identify as something else. The gender breakdown is about 10 million women to 8 million men, or 53% to 45%.
Pundits on both sides are watching the numbers closely, especially in the seven battleground states where the presidential election is likely to be decided.
In swing state Nevada, registered Republicans had cast about 38% of early votes and Democrats had cast 36% as of late Monday, Oct. 21. It’s a state where Democrats have outpaced Republicans in early voting in every election dating back to 2008.
The 18.8 million votes cast nationally so far this year are lagging behind the 2020 election. During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, more than 94 million Americans voted early, or by mail.
Still, early voting saw record numbers on day one in key states such as North Carolina and Georgia.
