BackHow does early voting work?
Most states are offering an option for voting in-person before Election Day
PremiumQ: How does early voting work?
A: Many Americans have the option to cast their ballot before Election Day, either by mail or early in-person, though this isn’t true for all voters in every state. For example, a minority of states, such as Texas, have restrictions on who qualifies to vote by mail this fall, requiring them to have certain reasons, such as being out of town during the voting period. Most states, including Texas, will offer voting in-person before Election Day this fall, according to data compiled by the Associated Press.
You can check your state or local election-office website for the locations and hours for in-person early voting, which often can differ from Election Day voting locations. Some early voters have encountered long lines, but waits are generally expected to lessen as early-voting periods continue. For example, in Georgia’s Gwinnett County, where the wait stretched more than eight hours on the first day of early voting on Oct. 12, the county’s online tracker showed wait times between zero and 30 minutes at voting locations on Oct. 18, a Sunday afternoon.
Through Oct. 16, at least 10 states had already exceeded the amount of early votes they received during the entire 2016 election. That includes the competitive states of Pennsylvania, Minnesota and New Hampshire.
This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text
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