ATLANTA, Ga. — Georgia voters shattered the state’s midterm early voting record before advance voting closed Friday evening, with more than 2.8 million ballots already in hand ahead of the Nov. 3 general election.
Figures from the Georgia secretary of state’s office put total early turnout at 2,810,170 as of 9:30 p.m. Friday. That count includes 2,691,841 ballots cast in person during the three-week advance voting period and 118,329 absentee ballots returned by mail.
The in-person number alone passed the 2022 midterm mark of almost 2.3 million on Thursday, a day before voting sites closed. The overall total topped the prior midterm early turnout record of about 2.5 million, also set four years ago.
Georgia has about 8.2 million registered voters, so roughly a third of the electorate has already voted. Turnout is up about 13% from 2022, and the early electorate skews younger and more diverse than in past midterms, with stronger showings in areas that tend to lean Democratic.
Those numbers do not reveal how anyone voted. The ballot includes races for U.S. Senate and governor, along with other statewide offices and seats in the General Assembly.
Voters who have not cast a ballot must now vote at their assigned neighborhood precinct on Tuesday. State law requires a valid photo ID at check-in, such as a Georgia driver’s license, even an expired one, or a free voter ID card from a county registrar or the Department of Driver Services.
Absentee ballots can no longer be safely mailed. Drop boxes closed with early voting sites, so completed ballots must be hand-delivered to the county registrar’s office before polls close at 7 p.m. on Election Day. Georgia does not count ballots that arrive late, regardless of postmark. Voters who requested an absentee ballot but would rather vote in person should bring the blank ballot to the polls so workers can cancel it.
Registration status and polling locations can be checked through the state’s My Voter Page at mvp.sos.ga.gov.
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Filed under: Savannah GA Politics News
