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Maricopa County early voting surges
Maricopa County sees a significant increase in early ballot returns compared to the 2022 general election. FOX 10's Andrew Christiansen reports.
MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz. - Election Day is just more than two weeks away, and early voting is surging in Maricopa County. Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap says voters from both parties are embracing early ballots.
Local perspective:
A ballot drop-off location on Central Avenue near Civic Space Park in downtown Phoenix is currently open for voters.
On Friday, the Maricopa County Recorder's Office will add 40 more ballot drop-off sites. Heap says the number of people voting early continues to climb each election cycle.
"For the early, in-person voting sites, we're actually seeing a pretty large increase in the number of people choosing to vote early," Heap said.
As early voting surges, Maricopa County prepares to add 40 additional ballot drop-off locations to accommodate voters submitting mail-in ballots before the deadline.
By the numbers:
Heap says his office has already received about 310,000 mail-in ballots, which is about 50,000 more ballots compared to this point in the 2022 general election.
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What they're saying:
"Democrats vote slightly higher by mail whereas Republicans vote slightly higher in person and on Election Day," Heap said.
However, Heap says that the traditional divide is shrinking as more Republicans choose to vote early by mail.
The recorder's office releases voting data to the parties about who has voted.
"It does help both parties in terms of knowing who they should contact, how many early ballots are still out there, as they try to contact their voters and encourage them to send in ballots," Heap said.
‘Using early ballots to gauge reality’
"Candidates at this point in the game are using early ballots to gauge reality, not so much about where to go next," Heap said.
Dig deeper:
Political consultant Stan Barnes says this real-time data is crucial. It allows parties to find out which voters to take off their advertising list, saving them valuable advertising dollars.
"You can call that person, and you could say, ‘How did you vote?’ In other words, you could do a poll," Barnes said.
Barnes says that means campaigns can gauge if their work is paying off while using the resources they have left to reach voters through TV, radio, and social media.
"Right now, it's that people are highly influenceable and are ready to hear a message, unlike April, when it's just so early," Barnes said.
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What's next:
Friday is the last day to request a mail-in ballot. The Maricopa County Recorder's Office is also recommending that voters mail their ballots back by Oct. 27 at the latest.
The Source: Information in this report was gathered from Justin Heap, Maricopa County recorder; and Stan Barnes, political consultant.