A man walks out of the Board of Elections Loop Super Site after casting his ballot in the 2024 presidential election on the second day of early voting in Chicago on Oct. 4, 2024. (KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
WHAT ARE ELECTION BETTING ODDS? EXPERT EXPLAINS WHY TRUMP IS CURRENT FAVORITE
In the last presidential election, mail ballots tended to skew Democratic. In 2020, 60% of Democrats reported voting by mail, compared to 32% of Republicans, according to a 2021 study from the MIT Election Data and Science Lab.
As of Monday evening, more than 15 million ballots have been cast nationwide.
Here is a breakdown of where early ballots have been cast, either by mail or in person, in the seven battleground states, according to The Associated Press.
Over the past two decades, the prevalence of early voting has skyrocketed. While early ballots demonstrate voter enthusiasm, they do not reliably determine which candidate is winning the race, because fewer voters are expected to cast early votes than in the previous presidential election.
A sample ballot and a voting sign are displayed on the first day of Virginia's in-person early voting at Long Bridge Park Aquatics and Fitness Center on Sept. 20, 2024 in Arlington, Virginia. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Some states also offer breakdowns of their early ballots – for example, by party affiliation, race, or age. Comparing these results to other elections might give the impression that one candidate or party is now doing better than the other.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Additionally, while early vote data shows the party registration of some voters, it does not reveal how they voted. States do not release actual vote counts until election night. The vote data that some states are releasing now shows the party affiliation of voters who have requested or returned a ballot. However, that is not the same as their actual vote. For example, a voter may have registered as a Democrat decades ago, but chose to vote for Trump this year. Many voters are not registered to either party, making their vote even more of a mystery.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/how-many-voters-have-already-cast-ballots-nov-5-election