These are historic numbers for Georgia, a crucial battleground state with 16 electoral votes, seen as pivotal in the race for the White House.
Nearly every day of early voting has set new records, according to Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. “We hit a milestone with 3 million voters during in-person early voting – an all-time first for the state,” Raffensperger posted on social media. “Huge thanks to our election officials, poll workers, and every voter who made this happen!”
Since that milestone, 3.6 million of Georgia’s 7.2 million registered voters have already cast their ballots. In-person early voting has contributed 3.4 million of these votes, with 224,000 from absentee mail ballots. An additional 118,000 absentee ballots have not yet been returned.
These figures are based on data from the state’s Election Data Hub, which is updated throughout each day. Rural counties such as Towns, Oconee, and Rabun report the highest percentages of early voters.
So far, 58% of voters are white, while 45% are Black. Both the youngest and oldest voters are particularly likely to vote early or by mail. Women have turned out in higher numbers, making up 60% of all votes cast compared to 44% by men.
Georgia does not release party affiliation data or specific turnout numbers. However, according to an Atlanta Journal-Constitution analysis, 613,000 of these early voters did not participate in the 2020 election. This figure includes new residents and new voters, as well as those who opted out of voting during the pandemic in 2020.
Early voting initiatives from both parties have likely driven these record-breaking numbers. “Young people are showing up and showing out. Turnout is the name of the game,” Democratic U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams posted on social media. Republicans have also promoted early voting. “Flood the polls,” the Georgia GOP posted on social media. “Make it too big to rig.”
The importance of every vote is evident after the 2020 election, in which former President Donald Trump lost Georgia by just 11,000 votes, marking the first Democratic win in the state since 1992.
Trump currently leads by an average of 1.9% in Georgia polling, as reported by Project 538. Georgia, with its 16 electoral votes, has long been considered one of seven key battleground states. No state-level executive offices or U.S. Senate seats are on the ballot this year, and all 14 congressional seats are expected to remain with their current parties, giving Republicans a 9-5 advantage.
Friday is the final day for early voting in Georgia.
