With just 19 days until the 2024 presidential election, early voting returns have become a major focus for both candidates as Americans cast pre-Election Day ballots in record numbers.

What is early voting?

Early voting varies by state. Some states have already started early voting, either in person, by mail, or both. (For example, in my home state of Massachusetts, voting by mail has already started, and in-person early voting starts this Saturday.)

How many people have voted so far?

The Election Lab at the University of Florida tracks early voting. Here’s the latest count from this tracker as of Thursday afternoon:

• 8,336,501 : total early votes
• 1,814,362 : in-person early votes
• 6,489,081 : mail ballots returned  
• 55,491,644 : mail ballots requested

What about early voting in the battleground states?

Here’s a look at early voting so far in the seven swing states—Georgia, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, North Carolina, and Nevada—which could determine the outcome of the 2024 election.

Residents in the battleground State of Georgia have already cast more than 620,000 votes, according to the University of Florida Election Lab tracker.

Meanwhile, in Arizona, where Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican candidate former President Donald Trump have been campaigning hard, more than 77,000 residents have already voted. This is worth watching in the run-up to November 5 because nearly 90% of Arizona voters cast their ballots early in the 2020 election.

And in the hotly competitive state of Pennsylvania, more than 629,000 residents have cast their ballots so far.

Among the states that report party affiliation (not all do), here’s how the votes break down by party:

• 51.4% Democrats
• 30.5% Republicans
• 18.1% Minor/No Party Affiliation

You can check out the full numbers and interactive map on the University of Florida’s Election Lab website, run by political science professor Michael McDonald, who has been tracking early voting since 2008.