Oh hey, Election Day is a week away! Here we are! Let's do the ballot return numbers.
Last Friday, we shared that the then-most recent returns showed some developing trends. This latest batch — now at 394,370 — only further confirms them.
Voters over the age of 55 are still leading ballot returns by far. Republicans have still turned in the most ballots. Neither of those are surprising for an off-year election. But unaffiliated voters continue to slightly edge out Democrats, and that is new. In the past, people who belong to political parties have tended to vote at higher rates than independents, but that trend seems to be shifting a bit.
If this year follows historic trends, Democrats and younger voters will start to turn in more ballots as Election Day gets closer.
El Paso and Jefferson counties are still the most prolific early voters, turning in nearly 57,000 and 50,500, respectively. And Arapahoe and Denver counties still trail at just over 38,000 and 26,000.
Want to parse out these trends yourself? Take a look at the PDF.
The Secretary of State's Office also noted that Monday, Oct. 28 was the last day to register to vote if you want a mail ballot. Eligible Coloradans can still register and vote in-person going forward.
