WASHINGTON (AP) — Early voting is significantly faster than the last midterm elections, with millions more Americans voting in advance and a particularly sharp increase in the number of states welcoming competitive Senate racesaccording to an Associated Press analysis of voting data five days before Election Day.
The increase is particularly pronounced in Texaswhere voters decide closely watched Senate, House and governor races. More than 6.3 million Texans voted early Wednesday, compared to 4.2 million at the same time four years ago, an increase of 50%.
Early voting has also increased by more than 30% from the same point four years ago in Maine, Michigan, North Carolina And KansasStates with competitive Senate races. In South Carolina, where voters choose a successor to the late Republican senator. Lindsey Grahamearly voting is up 83%.
Data arrives 5 days before election day
The data, compiled by the AP, offers a snapshot of early voter turnout five days before an election that will determine control of Congress and other key contests.
Nationwide, more than 43 million Americans voted early in person or returned their absentee ballots, nearly 10 million more than in 2022. The numbers cover 47 states and Washington, D.C., up from 48 states and the nation’s capital four years ago.
In states that provide information on voters’ party affiliation, about 6.8 million Democrats and 5.2 million Republicans cast early ballots. These numbers do not account for all early voters nationwide and do not indicate which candidates received their votes.
The increase comes as voters prepare to decide control of Congress two years into President Donald Trump’s second term, with Republicans holding the House and Senate.
Turnout was the size of Texas
Voters turned out in droves during Texas’ two-week early voting period, which ends Friday.
In Harris County, which includes Houston, 862,700 people had voted as of Wednesday, compared to 564,500 at the same time in 2022.
This surge comes in a county that has voted reliably Democratic in recent elections, although by varying margins. In 2024, Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris beat Trump by nearly 6 percentage points in the presidential election, while Democratic Senate candidate Colin Allred won the county by about 11 percentage points over Republican Sen. Ted Cruz.
This year, Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton faces Democrat James Talarico in a closely watched Senate racewhile Republican Governor Greg Abbott seeks re-election against Democrat Gina Hinojosa.
Hundreds of millions of dollars have been poured into the Senate race as Republicans fight to defend a state where Democrats haven’t won a statewide election in more than three decades. Asset visited Texas earlier this week, his third trip to the state in a month.
Early voting surges in Senate battleground states
Republicans are defending a 53-47 Senate majority in a midterm election in which the battleground has widened significantly, with Democrats hoping to cause upsets in states that have long favored Republicans.
In South Carolina, where Trump won by nearly 18 percentage points in 2024, early voting jumped 83% from the same point in 2022. The state is holding open elections this year for governor and U.S. Senate.
In Kansas, where Republican Sen. Roger Marshall faces Democratic megachurch Methodist pastor Adam Hamilton, early voting was up 34 percent, with about 83,000 more ballots cast than at the same time four years ago.
Michigan and Maine, both of which followed Senate elections closely, are also seeing increases.
In Maine, where Republican Sen. Susan Collins is facing former Democratic Senate President Troy Jackson, early voting is up 44%. Michigan recorded about 409,000 more early votes than at the same time in 2022, a 32% increase.
Michigan voters approved in-person early voting in November 2022, making this the first midterm election in which it is available statewide.
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Follow AP coverage of the 2026 midterm elections at https://apnews.com/hub/elections.
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