Nebraska voters have set a midterm election record for early voting. As of noon Monday, Nov. 7 – the day before Election Day in Nebraska – early voters have submitted 209,120 ballots across the state. That surpasses the former high-water mark of 208,945, which occurred in 2018.
The Secretary of State’s Office projects voter participation to be about 58 percent of the state’s 1,243,241 registered voters. That adds up to a projection of 721,079 ballots being cast in the 2022 general election. Nebraskans have requested at least 284,593 early ballots; if close to all are turned in at an official county dropbox by 8 pm on Nov. 8, that would mean roughly 40 percent of the ’22 vote will come in early. That’s a fantastic job by Nebraska voters to take advantage of the safest, most convenient method of voting – via early mail-in ballots.
Early voting also transcends partisan division: Of the 209,120 early ballots already cast in Nebraska, Republicans make up 47.6 percent; Democrats, 37.7 percent; and other parties and Nonpartisans, 14.7 percent. This is despite a continuous effort since 2020 to discredit early mail-in voting by national far-right politicians and media figures. By and large, Nebraskans aren’t buying the nonsense, and we’re not surprised.
Meanwhile, our state’s projected overall participation would basically match the most recent November midterm, four years ago. However, the projected percentage turnout is on track to be a good deal higher than in similar recent election cycles – that is, midterms with gubernatorial elections (2002, 2006, 2010, 2014). Of course, we’ll have to see how the actual vote compares to officials’ projections, but with a day to go, all signs indicate that this is going to be a record-breaker on a number of fronts.
Let’s finish strong, Nebraska! Visit our Election 2022 Central hub for voting resources and information, including how to make a plan to vote.
