More than 95 million Americans have already voted on eve of election
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More than 95 million Americans have cast ballots as of Monday, the day before Election Day, according to an estimate by the U.S. Elections Project at the University of Florida, Reuters reported.
The number of ballots cast early in this year’s election represents nearly 70 percent of all those cast in the 2016 general election, Reuters reported. The early voting numbers reflect a marked increase in mail-in and absentee ballots due to the coronavirus pandemic in which officials are trying to limit large crowds from forming at polling places.
President Trump has attacked vote-by-mail systems, suggesting without evidence they are ripe for fraud. Critics have accused Trump of making it harder for people to vote by slowing down mail processing.
Several key battleground states like Texas, Florida and North Carolina have reported record turnout during early voting so far this year.
In Arizona’s Maricopa County, the early vote number has already exceeded the total number of ballots cast there in 2016. Maricopa is the biggest county in the country that Trump won in 2016.
Many election experts predict that because of the surge in mail-in and early in-person voting, the public is unlikely to know the winner of Tuesday’s presidential election until early Wednesday morning or beyond.
Democrats are largely seen as embracing early mail-in voting while Trump supporters are expect to turn out in larger numbers on Election Day.
Reuters cited experts who predict that ballots cast in the 2020 election will largely exceed the 138 million votes cast in 2016.