Last day for early voting in Texas: Why are turnout numbers lower this year?

North Texas – Interest in the 2024 election is high, so why is early voting turnout lower?

Today is the last day of early voting in Texas, and while turnout is expected to rise, officials predict it won’t reach the levels we saw in the 2020 election.

So far, more than 42% of registered voters in Texas have cast their ballots, and that percentage is expected to rise as voters take advantage of the final day. However, current turnout is unlikely to match the more than 57% of registered voters who participated in early voting in 2020.

In Dallas County, 40% of registered voters have cast ballots, a decline of 15 percentage points from 2020.

Collin County had a turnout of more than 52%, an 18-point drop from the last election.

In Denton County, turnout is just under 52%, more than 12 points lower than in 2020.

Data for Tarrant County will be available later today.

Turnout in these large DFW counties lags behind previous figures. But why?

An important factor is the number of early voting days. In 2020, voters had 18 days to vote early due to the pandemic. This year that period was reduced to twelve days.

Is early voting still possible?

Yes: To increase turnout, Dallas County has extended voting hours, with polls open until 9 p.m. today.

Tarrant County, Collin County and Denton County voting centers close at 7 p.m

For information about voting locations and voting hours, please visit the 2024 election page.