Early voting in the 2026 U.S. midterms had passed 57 million ballots by Monday, Nov. 2, according to the University of Florida Election Lab, putting the tally above its archived 2022 count despite uneven state coverage.
The lab’s archive records 45,920,446 early votes in 2022, comprising 20,487,803 in-person ballots and 25,432,643 returned mail ballots. Its 2026 tracker combines early in-person votes with returned mail ballots where states report them. An earlier EconoTimes report tracked the count as it approached 50 million.
The figures do not offer a direct comparison across the two election cycles. The Associated Press reported more than 57 million ballots across 47 states and Washington, D.C., in 2026, versus just under 44.5 million across 49 states and Washington, D.C., in 2022. The AP’s 2022 estimate also differs from the Election Lab archive, so the available totals do not support a precise percentage increase.
States report at different times, and some do not provide daily updates, the Election Lab says. The tracker measures ballot participation but does not reveal candidate choices. The lab also cautions that its party-registration figures describe voters’ registration, not how they marked their ballots.
Michael McDonald, a University of Florida political scientist, told Axios on Oct. 29 that unaffiliated voters were participating in greater numbers. “These independents, they're showing up in much greater numbers,” he said. Charles Stewart, director of MIT’s Election Data and Science Lab, told Axios the high early-vote tally may reflect people changing when or how they vote rather than an increase in overall turnout. Axios also reported campaign mobilization as a possible factor.
The Associated Press said the Nov. 3 midterms will test whether Republicans retain control of Congress. Election Day voting will add to the participation count.
