Early and absentee voting data for the first four days in Tennessee and the federal general election has been released by the Tennessee Secretary of State’s office. In the first four days of early and absentee voting, 178,182 Tennesseans cast their vote, according to the data.
View the full report of voter turnout from the first 4 days of early and absentee voting for the Nov. 8 State and Federal General Election here: https://t.co/8rggulxKvP and comparisons to 2018 and 2014 here: https://t.co/GatKWbnAKx. #GoVoteTN pic.twitter.com/nfHrS1mPmN
— Tre Hargett (@sectrehargett) October 24, 2022
On day one (October 19) of early voting, 59,118 cast their vote; day two (October 20) saw 47,568 votes cast; day three (October 21) saw 50,759 votes cast; and day four (October 22) saw 20,737 votes cast.
“Every year, more Tennesseans are taking advantage of the convenience and flexibility of our generous early voting period,” Secretary of State Tre Hargett said in a statement. “I encourage you to make your voice heard.”
Vote counts for the first four days of early voting are down significantly compared to votes cast in the first four days of early voting for the 2018 Tennessee and federal general election.
In 2018, 406,323 Tennesseans cast their vote during the first four days of early and absentee voting, which is a 56.15 percent difference when compared to this year’s data. In 2014, just 104,868 Tennesseans cast their vote during the first four days of early and absentee voting.
“With early voting, many Tennesseans can choose the time and location to cast their ballot,” Coordinator of Elections Mark Goins said in a statement. “And by casting your ballot early, you can avoid Election Day crowds and help reduce wait times for yourself and other voters.”
Tennessee early voting runs from now through November 3, with the deadline for requesting a mail-in ballot on November 1. Mail-in ballots must be returned on voting day, November 8.
Today is the first Saturday of early voting for the Nov. 8 election. Tennessee’s generous early voting period gives voters two Saturdays to cast their ballot, today & Oct 29. The last day to #VoteEarlyTN is Thursday, Nov. 3. Learn more at https://t.co/eBiL9iCXT6. #GoVoteTN pic.twitter.com/wCorY5TArl
— Tre Hargett (@sectrehargett) October 22, 2022
According to the secretary of state’s office, to vote in Tennessee, voters must bring a valid photo identification. It is acceptable to present a Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security license, state government ID, or federal government photo identification, even if it has expired. However, the office notes that it is not acceptable to present a student ID or a driver’s license from out of state.
Tennessee voters can access polling hours, locations, and more voting information with the free GoVoteTN app – available on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store – or online at govotetn.gov, the secretary of state’s office notes.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network.
Photo “Tre Hargett” by Tennessee Secretary of State. Background Photo “Election Day” by Phil Roeder. CC BY 2.0.
I am all for announcing the early turnout totals but the problem is that data of the voters like name and address are also made available. It follows that campaigns will mine this data to develop targeted voter turnout pushes as the real election day approaches.