In the United States almost 22 million people have voted already in the presidential election through absentee ballots and early voting options.
Figures on early voting in Texas stick out, with a 42.6% increase in votes now compared to the same time last year, according to the New York Times. The southern state hasn't voted for a democratic presidential candidate since 1976.
Early voting has in creased substantially in the US over the past 20 years. In 1996, only 10% voted early whilst that figure has risen to roughly 30% now.
37 states in the US have legislated for early voting while states such as Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania and South Carolina among others, require a valid excuse for absentee voting.
Early voting has increased among Hispanics and decreased among young people https://t.co/TZ7ZMb2AlI pic.twitter.com/1QoNECW2OW
— The New York Times (@nytimes) October 31, 2016
Speaking to the New York Times, Barry Burden, a professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison said the number of early voters who are Democrats was higher because of a difference in campaign strategy.
“Since 2008, Democrats have taken to early voting in a way that Republicans have not,” he said. “This is largely because the Obama campaign emphasized the strategy of using early voting. The Clinton campaign has continued much of that effort. The Trump campaign is doing little by comparison.”
