More than 12.6 million Americans had cast ballots in the 2026 midterm elections as of Tuesday, October 20, according to the University of Florida Election Lab's early-vote tracker, as reported by Axios. Early voting is underway in at least 30 states, WJLA reported. The UF Election Lab tracker was last updated late on October 20.

The raw total matters less than how it compares with past elections. Measured against each state's total 2022 midterm turnout, Georgia and Virginia lead the reporting states, Axios found. Georgia had passed 1 million ballots, equal to 25.9% of its 2022 total, and Virginia had 770,916, or 25.5%. At the other end, Oregon (0.6%), Kentucky (1.4%) and Connecticut (1.5%) were lowest, though Axios noted that states set their own early-voting calendars and reporting schedules, so low figures don't necessarily mean low participation.

Georgia's numbers repay a closer look. The Georgia Votes tracker counted 1,027,037 ballots as of early October 20, about 3% ahead of the same point in 2022, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that about 95% of early voters also voted in 2024. Georgia's early voting runs through October 30, and the last day to request an absentee ballot is October 23, per Axios Atlanta.

Texas opened with crowds. The Secretary of State's office reported 40,077 first-day early voters in Travis County, close to the 46,610 on the first day in 2024 and well above 25,352 in 2022, CBS Austin reported. Dallas County reported a record 76,079 in-person votes on its first day, per Axios, and CBS Austin said Harris County also reported record turnout. CBS Austin reported that more than 33,000 Travis County residents had voted that day as of 5 p.m. Tuesday. Texas early voting continues through October 30.

Why it matters

With a large share of the electorate already in, the final two weeks are increasingly about who has not voted yet. So far, early ballots are coming mostly from habitual voters (about 95% of Georgia's early voters also voted in 2024, per the AJC), which means lower-propensity voters are still largely outstanding. The calendar is tight: Georgia's absentee request window closes October 23, and early voting in Georgia and Texas ends October 30.

Strong early numbers are easy to over-read. Analysts quoted by Axios caution that early turnout signals engagement but is not a reliable predictor of results, because early voters are more politically engaged than the average voter and state rules differ.

Sources

• Axios — "Where midterms early voting is surging" (David Adkins, Herb Scribner) — 2026-10-20
• University of Florida Election Lab — "2026 Early Voting" tracker — last updated 2026-10-20, 10:12 p.m.
• WJLA 7News — "Early voting begins in 30 states as 10 million cast ballots ahead of midterms" (Kendra Mann) — 2026-10-20
• CBS Austin — "Texas counties see high early voting turnout in midterms" (Andrew Lamparski) — 2026-10-20
• Georgia Votes — 2026 general election early-vote tracker — updated 2026-10-20
• Atlanta Journal-Constitution — "Georgia early voting tops 1 million. Here's what the numbers tell us." (Greg Bluestein, Charles Minshew) — 2026-10-20
• Axios Atlanta — "Early voting begins Tuesday for Nov. 3 general election" (Kristal Dixon) — 2026-10-13

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