Election 2024: Strong turnout in Texas for early voting

Early voting in Texas

Strong early voting turnout continued Wednesday, as more Central Texans opted to head to the polls ahead of Election Day.

TEXAS - Strong early voting turnout continued on Wednesday, as more Central Texans opted to head to the polls ahead of Election Day.

"It does look like this is going to be a relatively high turnout election in Texas," said Joshua Blank with the Texas Politics Project at UT Austin.

"Higher turnout is good because it means people are supporting the system," said Dr. Brian Smith, a political science professor at St. Edward's University.

In Travis, Williamson and Hays Counties, significantly more people turned out in the first week of early voting this year, compared to 2020. Although COVID and population growth affect that comparison, there's no doubt this year's numbers are high.

"This has been such a nasty, divisive election at the presidential level that people have made up their mind, and they want to cast their votes sooner rather than later," said Smith.

Large number of people turnout for early voting

In Travis County, the vote count may be coming from a large number of first-time voters. There is also a possibility some of those casting a ballot now haven't voted in a while.

In Texas, some experts say that could spell an advantage for Republicans.

"So far, the data from early voting indicates that significantly more voters with a Republican primary voting history have voted than voters with a Democratic primary voting history. And that gap is unlikely to be erased," said Blank.

Part of that equation could be people turning out who haven't voted in a while.

"There's been a lot of discussion lately about Trump's ability to turn out low-propensity voters, people who are unlikely to vote, and his appeal among these voters," said Blank.

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Other factors could help Democrats, though. Looking at Travis County, more young people and first-time voters are making their voices heard this year, with 18- to 25-year-olds showing the largest increase in registration.

"When we look at first time voters, this often helps the Democrats. They tend to do better with younger voters or voters who are new to the system," said Smith.

In its latest poll, the Texas Politics Project delved into what issues are motivating Texans to show up.

"Voters told us that the economy and prices were driving them to the polls. This is an issue that most voters feel on a daily basis," said Blank. "Abortion remains a concern, but more so for Democratic voters."

46K in Travis Co. vote on first day of early voting

Around five percent of registered voters in Travis County cast their ballot on the first day of early voting Monday.

That same poll showed former President Donald Trump leading Vice President Kamala Harris by five points in the presidential race in Texas. In the race for U.S. Senate, it showed Sen. Ted Cruz, leading Democratic challenger Rep. Colin Allred by seven points.

"There's no indication in our polling or any of the other polling at this point, along with what we've seen in early voting turnout to date indicate a Democratic surprise here in Texas," said Blank.

Eight early voting locations in Travis County will have extended hours Thursday and Friday. They'll be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. for the last two days of early voting. Those locations are:

Austin Permitting and Development Center