More than 58.7 million Americans have voted in the 2020 presidential election thus far, topping all anticipated ballots in the 2016 polls, but an unprecedented number of mail-in ballots has led to the possibility that the result is delayed in counting votes. it may extend beyond November 3, according to a media report.
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The CNN report said that, according to a poll of election officials in all 50 states and Washington, DC by the US-based network Edison Research and Catalist, more than 58.7 million Americans have voted so far. in the elections, with 9 days left until November 3.
(Read more: Early voting in the US exceeds 2016, nine days before the elections)
The report said that about 58.3 million pre-election ballots were cast in 2016, including ballots in all three vote-by-mail states that year. That early voting accounted for about 42 percent of all ballots cast in the 2016 presidential election.
“Pre-election voting for the November elections has surpassed all early votes cast in 2016 with 9 days to Election Day,” the report says.
“Pre-election day voting is skyrocketing across the country amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and states are reporting record turnout as voters are motivated to vote by mail or in person by November. “, He said.
However, another CNN report noted that despite the unprecedented vote-by-mail vote, there is a possibility that the full results of who will win the presidential election between President Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Joe Biden in the election night.
“Election night can be synonymous with unpredictability, just look at 2016, but this year could be even more murky than usual. The pandemic has changed the way millions of Americans vote for president, ”the report says.
While voters have already cast an unprecedented number of mail-in ballots, in many places, including potential battlefield states, mail-in ballots will not be counted until after the election, “which could lead to long delays in the ability of the media to call elections on election night, ”he said.
CNN quoted media experts to say that the count could last longer than election night and could last until the next morning or the following afternoon or even later.
He said 54 percent of those 58.7 million votes already cast in this cycle came from the 16 states with the most competitive rankings, which will play a crucial role in determining who wins the presidency this year.
Among those states, Minnesota has currently seen the largest percentage increase in early voting turnout compared to the previous cycle, based on Catalist data from both years in 14 key states.
The report added that younger voters (ages 18-29) are also casting significantly more votes and account for a higher proportion of votes leading up to Election Day than at the same time four years ago in all states. key with available information. .
In all 14 of these key states, voters under 30 have seen spikes in their early voting turnout compared to this point in 2016, he said.
The report looks at the turnout in several key states that Trump had won by the narrowest margin in 2016.
Trump had won Florida by just over one percentage point in 2016 and capturing the state again this year is critical to his re-election prospects, he said.
The report added that 35 percent of likely voters in Florida say they have already cast their vote. Of that group, 71 percent said they support Biden and 27 percent Trump. In North Carolina, Democrats are also outpacing Republicans in their pre-election vote percentage, but that margin is shrinking amid an increase in early voting.
The report says that about 40 percent of the first votes Catalist has analyzed come from Democrats compared to 30 percent from Republicans so far.
In Pennsylvania, a crucial state that Trump won by less than a percentage point in 2016, Democrats continue to have a significant advantage over Republicans in their share of votes already cast, according to data from the catalyst party.
About 70 percent of pre-election votes have come from Democrats so far, compared with about 20 percent from Republicans, he said.
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