More than 46,000 Alaskans have cast their ballots in person or by mail after a week of early voting, according to state elections officials. The Alaska Division of Elections celebrated what it described as “historic” turnout in a news release on Friday. Early and absentee votes submitted so far add up to roughly 11% of total turnout in 2020.
In-person voting was up more than 30% compared to 2020 during the first two days of early voting, according to Division of Elections Director Carol Beecher.
Who those 46,000 Alaskans have voted for will remain a mystery until counting begins on Election Day, but elections officials do release voters’ party registration information on a regular basis ahead of the final vote, which can provide some clues.
Campaigns on both sides of the aisle have increasingly urged voters to cast their ballots ahead of Election Day, and partisan voters appear to be listening. Voters registered with a political party make up a greater share of the electorate so far than in 2020.
Republicans make up 34% of the early and absentee vote so far compared with 29% of total turnout in 2020. Democrats are responsible for 18% of the vote so far, compared with 16% in 2020.
Republicans make up an especially large share of the in-person early vote — 37% so far, compared with 29% in 2020 — while Democrats make up a disproportionately large percentage of absentee votes. Some 24% of absentee votes have come from Democrats, compared with 16% of all votes in 2020.
Early and absentee voting has grown steadily more popular in recent years. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 205,000 Alaskans voted early or absentee. That was a majority of all votes cast in that election.
A full list of early voting locations and their hours of operation are available at elections.alaska.gov/avo. Absentee ballots can also be dropped off at early voting locations or at Election Day precincts.
Polls are open on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Eric Stone covers state government, tracking the Alaska Legislature, state policy and its impact on all Alaskans. Reach him at estone@alaskapublic.org and follow him on X at @eriwinsto. Read more about Eric here.
