MADISON, Wis. — Recent reports from Wisconsin elections officials indicate a significant surge in early in-person absentee voting this election cycle, exhibiting an almost 40% rise compared to the figures from 2020.
Early in-person absentee voting commenced on Tuesday in this critical swing state. The Wisconsin Elections Commission revealed that by Friday morning, a total of 292,702 individuals had participated in early in-person voting. This marks an increase from 209,665 early voters recorded on the same day in 2020.
Additionally, the number of absentee ballots requested has reached 921,832, with 715,395 of these ballots either returned by mail or cast by early voters in person.
To provide some context, historical data shows that approximately 640,100 absentee ballots were submitted in 2008, which increased to 665,340 in 2012. In 2016, the number rose to 824,736, and during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, around 1.9 million absentee ballots were cast.
The period for early in-person absentee voting will remain open until Sunday, November 3, with the stipulation that all absentee ballots must be received by local election clerks by 8 p.m. on Election Day, November 5, in order to be counted.
In light of the early voting momentum among Democrats in 2020, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has been actively urging his conservative supporters to participate in early voting this year.
Wisconsin electoral authorities note a 40% rise in early voting participation.
