2024 US presidential election: In which states can voters already cast a ballot?
Early voting is underway in dozens of states this week as voters race to cast their ballot with a week left until Election Day.
Early voting is underway across the country, with some estimates putting the number of ballots cast already at thirty-two million. Since Election Day in the US always falls on a Tuesday and is not a national holiday, some states have expanded the options for voters to ensure they have more than one option to cast their ballot. Early voting also helps to keep the lines shorter on Election Day, allowing the votes to be tabulated when the polls are scheduled to close. Sometimes, the count is delayed because people are still waiting to cast their ballot.
Early voting is underway across the US
This week, the vast majority of states that offer early voting options will have polling locations open. However, in some states, these hours will differ by county. Early voting will begin in Kentucky and Oklahoma this week.
- Alaska: Find times and dates by city here.
- Arizona: Wednesday, October 9 - Friday, November 1*
- Arkansas: Monday, October 21 - Monday, November 4
- Colorado: All registered voters are sent a ballot, here is where they can be returned.
- Connecticut: Monday, October 21 - Sunday, November 3
- Delaware: Friday, October 25 - Sunday, November 3
- Florida: Saturday, October 26 - Saturday, November 2
- Georgia: Tuesday, October 15 - Friday, November 1
- Hawaii: All registered voters are sent a ballot, here is where they can be returned.
- Illinois: Thursday, September 26 - Monday, November 4
- Indiana: Find out where to vote early here.
- Kentucky: Thursday, October 31 - Saturday, November 2
- Louisiana: Friday, October 18 - Tuesday, October 29
- Maryland: Thursday, October 24 - Thursday, October 31
- Massachusetts: Saturday, October 19 - Friday, November 1
- Michigan: Find time and dates by counties here.
- Minnesota: Friday, September 20 - Monday, November 4
- Nebraska: Friday, October 25 - Monday, November 4
- Nevada: Saturday, October 19 - Friday, November 1
- New Jersey: Saturday, October 26 - Sunday, November 3
- New Mexico: Tuesday, October 8 - Saturday, November 2
- New York: Saturday, October 26 - Sunday, November 3
- North Carolina: Thursday, October 17 - Saturday, November 2
- North Dakota: Check Dates by County here.
- Ohio: October 8 and includes the two Saturdays and the two Sundays before Election Day.
- Oklahoma: Wednesday, October 30 - Saturday, November 2
- Rhode Island: Wednesday, October 16 - Monday, November 4
- South Carolina: Monday, October 21 - Saturday, November 2
- Tennessee: Wednesday, October 16 - Thursday, October 31
- Texas: Monday, October 21 - Friday, November 1
- Utah: Tuesday, October 22 - Friday, November 1
- Virginia: Friday, September 20 - Saturday, November 2
- Washington: All voters sent mail in ballot, find out where to return yours here.
- West Virginia: Wednesday, October 23 - Saturday, November 2
*Dates and times may differ by county, check with your local election office.
Also, before heading out, make sure to check if you are required to bring an ID to the polling location. Thirty-six states in the country require some form of ID to be shown at the polling location before a ballot is distributed.
What do the polls show?
In recent elections, Democratic voters have been more likely to take advantage of early voting and vote-by-mail options. These tendencies make exit polls, which are taken by surveying voters as they leave a polling location, less reliable as one needs to account for a Democratic bias in their results. The final polls before the election are being released, and those from the swing states show a very close race, with more results falling within the margin of error, meaning no candidate has a clear lead.