Here's how many votes could be cast before Election Day arrives
FILE-People vote during the South Carolina Republican presidential primary at Kilbourne Baptist Church on February 24, 2024 in Columbia, South Carolina. (Photo by Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
The election is a few weeks away and as voters mull over their choice for president, some may cast their ballots before Nov. 5.
A recent Gallup poll finds 40% of registered voters, as of late September, either plan to vote before Election Day or have voted early. The balance of early voters in 2024 is the same as or higher than those captured in other recent election years.
The poll also shows that voting will likely be higher in 2024 compared to 2020. Approximately 69% of registered voters plan to cast their ballots in person this year, while 21% plan to vote by mail and 6% are unsure how they will vote.
Older voters are most likely to say they will vote by mail -- 27% of those 65 and older say they will do so, compared with 17% of voters aged 50 to 64 and 19% of those under 50.
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Early voting also differs by age. Approximately 51% of older voters (aged 65 and older) say they will vote early this year compared to 41% of registered voters between the ages of 50 and 64 and 34% of voters under 50.
According to the poll, early voting intentions (including reports of actual early voting) have risen over the course of presidential election campaigns since 2004. Gallup noted that the final percentage of early voters this year could approach or eclipse 50% by the end of the 2024 presidential election campaign.
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In terms of early voting among political parties, Democrats (46%) say they plan to vote before Election Day compared to 31% of Republicans. Political independents also say they are more likely to vote before Election Day this year compared to previous years when some independents were the least likely party group to vote early.
Gallup created their poll using data from a separate Sept. 16-28 poll of registered voters in the U.S. completed before most Americans were able to vote early.
The analytics and advisory company explains that early voting plans are not definitive, since many voters who in September or early October are not considering voting before Election Day take advantage of opportunities to do so in the final weeks of the campaign.