ATLANTA — On the last day of early voting, Georgians shattered yet another record.
The state saw record-breaking early turnout with 2,288,889 voters casting their ballot during the advance voting period, according to the Secretary of State's Office. On Friday alone, 231,063 people voted to help surpass the 2.5 million mark for ballots cast prior to Election Day -- breaking a state midterm election record. This number includes the 216,067 mail-in ballots the state has received so far.
Data shows Friday's in-person total was 6% higher than the final day of early voting in the 2020 presidential election. However, it did not beat the 2020 election's record of 2.6 million ballots cast early during that advanced voting period. This was before Georgia passed its newest election law, which did away with 24-hour drop boxes and further standardized early voting days to allow for two optional Sunday voting dates as determined by the county and requires two Saturday voting days.
“Georgia voters came out in near Presidential-level numbers,” said Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. “County election directors handled that demand with the utmost professionalism. They navigated a whole host of challenges and executed seamlessly. They deserve our highest praise.”
As of Friday, over 75% of Absentee ballots have been returned to county election offices, according to a news release from the Secretary of State Office. Voters have until 7 p.m. on Election Day to return them.
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