Georgia’s early voting is running ahead of 2022, and the headlines have called it record-breaking. The record is real but small. Once the growth in registered voters is counted, the share of voters who have cast early ballots has barely moved from four years ago, and it is far below 2024. What has changed is where the ballots come from. The Metro Atlanta Core counties and the Atlanta suburban counties are casting a larger share of Georgia’s early vote than in 2022, while rural, small-city and Black Belt counties are casting a smaller one.
The Metro Atlanta Core counties of Fulton, DeKalb, Cobb, Clayton and Gwinnett cast 39.5% of Georgia’s early ballots from Oct. 13 to 23, up from 37.8% on the same days of 2022, and Cobb and Gwinnett account for nearly all of that gain. Rural, small-city and Black Belt counties each lost between 8% and 11% of their share. Alongside that pattern, Republican-primary voters have fallen below their 2022 pace this week and White voters have stalled at it. We expect the weekend to leave the picture much as it is.
Explore daily counts by county and voter group on the Georgia Early Voting Dashboard.
Share of Georgia’s early vote by county group
Only the Metro Atlanta Core and Atlanta suburban counties gained share of Georgia’s early ballots from 2022. The Metro Atlanta Core counties’ share rose 4.6% in relative terms, from 37.8% to 39.5%, and the six Atlanta suburban counties’ 2.3%, from 12.5% to 12.8%. The Atlanta exurban counties fell 2.0% and counties with larger cities 0.7%, while small-city counties lost 11.4% of their share, rural counties outside the Black Belt 8.4% and the Black Belt counties 11.4%.
What it means. The early vote is concentrating in the Metro Atlanta Core and inner suburbs. Ballots are still growing everywhere on the shared days, from 3.5% in small-city and Black Belt counties to 16.0% in counties with larger cities and 22.2% in the Metro Atlanta Core, but Georgia’s total is 16.8% ahead of 2022 on those days, so any group growing more slowly than that loses share.
Only the Metro ATL Core and ATL Suburban counties gained share of Georgia’s early ballots from 2022, while rural, small-city and Black Belt counties each lost 8% to 11% of theirs
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Each group’s share of Georgia’s accepted early ballots on the same days, Tue., Oct. 13 to Fri., Oct. 23, 2026 against Tue., Oct. 18 to Fri., Oct. 28, 2022, and the percentage change between the two shares. The seven groups do not overlap and together contain all 159 counties. 2022 counts from Oct. 24 include estimated Gwinnett ballots, which are part of the statewide total every share is measured against.
The Metro ATL Core counties’ slice of Georgia’s early ballots grew from 37.8% in 2022 to 39.5% in 2026, while the rural, small-city and Black Belt slices together shrank from 15.9% to 14.3%
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Each group’s share of Georgia’s accepted early ballots on the same days, Tue., Oct. 13 to Fri., Oct. 23, 2026 and Tue., Oct. 18 to Fri., Oct. 28, 2022. Slices run clockwise from the top in the order Metro ATL Core, ATL Suburban, ATL Exurban, larger cities, small-city, rural, Black Belt. 2022 counts from Oct. 24 include estimated Gwinnett ballots.
New trends
Republican-primary and White voters have slipped below their 2022 pace. Ballots from voters whose latest primary was Republican were 4.0% ahead of 2022 in the first week and are 3.9% behind from Oct. 19 to 23, and White voters went from 13.2% ahead to 0.5% ahead. Voters 35 to 54 are 2.5% behind. The pattern holds without Gwinnett, whose 2022 ballots are partly estimated: Republican-primary voters are 3.6% behind and White voters 0.8% ahead.
What it means. The remaining growth over 2022 comes from Democratic-primary voters (29.2% ahead), Black voters (26.2%), Hispanic voters (119.4%), Asian voters (62.3%) and voters 18 to 34 (25.4%), plus voters 65 and older (19.6%). The data show when ballots arrive, not whether those groups will vote on Election Day.
How to read this table: each row is a group of voters, and the bars show how far ahead of or behind the same days of 2022 its accepted early ballots are. What to notice: the Republican-primary, White and 35-to-54 rows move from ahead to behind between week 1 and week 2, while the Hispanic row stays above 100% in both.
| Group | Week 1, Oct. 13 to 18 | Week 2, Oct. 19 to 23 | Friday, Oct. 23 | Week 2 without Gwinnett | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | |||||
| Democratic-primary voters | +47.0% | +29.2% | +25.2% | +28.0% | |
| Republican-primary voters | +4.0% | −3.9% | −3.6% | −3.6% | |
| No primary record | +11.9% | +6.6% | +6.7% | +4.0% | |
| Race | |||||
| Black voters | +38.2% | +26.2% | +24.0% | +24.7% | |
| White voters | +13.2% | +0.5% | −1.0% | +0.8% | |
| Hispanic voters | +126.0% | +119.4% | +123.6% | +111.6% | |
| Asian voters | +84.4% | +62.3% | +59.2% | +54.2% | |
| Age | |||||
| Voters 18 to 34 | +37.2% | +25.4% | +22.5% | +23.2% | |
| Voters 35 to 54 | +11.1% | −2.5% | −4.4% | −3.1% | |
| Voters 55 to 64 | +14.9% | +0.5% | +1.6% | −0.3% | |
| Voters 65 and older | +32.6% | +19.6% | +21.4% | +18.4% | |
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Statewide accepted ballots. Week 1 is Oct. 13 to 18, 2026 against Oct. 18 to 23, 2022; week 2 is Oct. 19 to 23 against Oct. 24 to 28, 2022; Friday against Oct. 28, 2022. 2022 counts from Oct. 24 include estimated Gwinnett ballots, with a voter mix modeled from other counties, so the last column removes Gwinnett from both years. Ballots with no age or race on record are not shown.
The Democratic-primary share of each day’s ballots has fallen from 55.0% on Oct. 13 to 38.7% on Oct. 23, as it did in 2022, from 45.2% to 33.6%. Each day’s share has stayed between 4.7 and 9.9 points above the matching 2022 day, and Friday’s was 5.2 points above. Voters 18 to 34 were 16.9% of Friday’s ballots, against 15.0% on the matching 2022 day.
Weekend preview
We expect 106,200 to 114,900 accepted ballots on Saturday, Oct. 24, and 28,600 to 35,800 on Sunday, Oct. 25. Saturday matches Oct. 29, 2022, when Georgia accepted 98,602 ballots, and Sunday matches Oct. 30, 2022, when it accepted 26,544. By Sunday night the running total would reach 1.77 million to 1.78 million, 6.0% to 6.9% ahead of the 1,668,295 at the matching 2022 point.
What it means. The weekend should leave the picture much as it is: the lead on the eleven shared days stays between 16.1% and 17.1% because ballots from Oct. 19 to 23 ran about 9.9% above 2022’s, below the lead already built, while the running-total lead edges up toward that rate. Sunday voting is concentrated in the Metro Atlanta Core counties: they cast 75.4% of Georgia’s Sunday ballots in 2022 and 77.2% on Sunday, Oct. 18, so Sunday’s total depends on their hours. Saturday in the Metro Atlanta Core counties should bring 41,800 to 47,500 ballots, about 39% to 41% of Georgia’s Saturday total against 38.6% in 2022, and Sunday 74% to 77%, against 75.4%. Their share of weekend ballots should stay close to 2022’s, so the weekend should change their overall share very little.
How to read this table: each row is an area, with the ballots accepted on the matching 2022 day and our expected range for 2026. What to notice: Sunday ballots are few outside the Metro Atlanta Core counties, and Cobb’s Sunday range is small because its 2022 Sunday voting was limited.
| Area | Sat., Oct. 29, 2022 | Expected Sat., Oct. 24, 2026 | Sun., Oct. 30, 2022 | Expected Sun., Oct. 25, 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fulton | 12,360 | 13,643 to 14,380 | 7,078 | 7,813 to 8,235 |
| DeKalb | 8,237 | 7,849 to 10,659 | 4,894 | 4,664 to 6,333 |
| Cobb | 7,987 | 8,568 to 11,001 | 1,958 | 2,100 to 2,697 |
| Clayton | 1,955 | 2,165 to 2,600 | 1,099 | 1,217 to 1,461 |
| Gwinnett | 7,522 | 8,681 to 9,611 | 4,996 | 5,766 to 6,469 |
| Metro ATL Core | 38,061 | 41,829 to 47,460 | 20,025 | 22,007 to 26,523 |
| Rest of Georgia | 60,541 | 62,233 to 67,717 | 6,519 | 6,701 to 9,407 |
| Georgia | 98,602 | 106,236 to 114,908 | 26,544 | 28,599 to 35,830 |
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Each expected range applies the lowest and highest ratio of 2026 to 2022 daily ballots in the area from Mon., Oct. 19 to Fri., Oct. 23 to the matching 2022 day; the Sunday high end also considers the ratio on Sun., Oct. 18, 2026. 2022 counts from Oct. 24 include estimated Gwinnett ballots, so Gwinnett, the Metro ATL Core and Georgia rows are partly estimated.
The final week should be larger than the weekend. The matching 2022 days from Monday, Oct. 26 to Friday, Oct. 30 brought 149,129, 134,484, 145,257, 168,471 and 242,300 ballots, and Friday, Oct. 30, the last day of early voting in 2026, matches the largest day of 2022’s early voting.
Georgia’s early vote and the records
Georgia has accepted 1,632,973 early ballots, 89,824 more than the 1,543,149 at the same point in 2022 and 37.7% fewer than the 2,619,591 accepted at the same point in 2024, the same number of days before Election Day. 1,554,920 were cast in person, 74,429 came by mail and 3,624 were electronic. On Friday, county election offices received and accepted 163,050 ballots, 8.5% more than on the matching 2022 day.
Headlines say record-breaking, and the records are small. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said Oct. 20, “We continue to break records each day of early voting,” according to FOX 5 Atlanta, which reported the count about 3% above the same point in 2022; WTVM reported “record early voting turnout” in Georgia and Columbus. Registered voters grew to 8,223,613 since 2022, which is why the share who have voted early barely moved, and the 2024 presidential election was at 31.8% of registered voters by this point. The dashboard’s 80% range for the final early total, 2.51 million to 3.30 million, includes totals below 2022’s 2,534,136, so a final record is not assured.
The biggest record was the first day. CBS Atlanta reported 188,667 in-person votes on Oct. 13 against 134,962 on the first day of 2022, about 40% more. The lead has narrowed since: the matching 2022 day was 146,775 accepted ballots against 196,852 in 2026, 34.1% more. Headline figures differ because outlets count in-person votes or all ballots, compare calendar days or days until Election Day, and use data from different hours.
What it means. The early vote is ahead of 2022 but the margin is closing on the eleven shared days: each day’s ballots from Oct. 21 to 23 ran 7.7% to 9.3% above the matching 2022 day, less than the 16.8% lead already built up. The running-total lead, which counts 2022’s extra first day, is still growing, from 0.7% on Oct. 16 to 5.8%. In-person ballots are 11.8% ahead of 2022 by days until Election Day, against 5.8% for all ballots, because mail ballots are arriving more slowly: 49.5% of the 151,456 requested have been returned, against 57.2% of 262,003 at this point in 2022 and 52.4% in 2024. The dashboard projects about 2.68 million early ballots by Election Day.
The running total counts one more 2022 voting day. Early voting began Monday, Oct. 17 in 2022 and Tuesday, Oct. 13 in 2026, so by the same number of days until Election Day, 2022 had accepted 150,593 ballots by the end of its first day, against 5,850 in 2026 before Oct. 13. Counting only the eleven days both years share, Georgia is 16.8% ahead: 1,627,123 ballots against 1,392,556.
How to read this table: each row is a 2026 day and the 2022 day the same number of days before Election Day.
| Day (days until Election Day) | 2026 all ballots | 2026 in person | 2022 all ballots | 2022 in person | Day’s change | Running total change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue., Oct. 13 (21) | 196,852 | 190,396 | 146,775 | 134,872 | +34.1% | −31.8% |
| Wed., Oct. 14 (20) | 180,523 | 174,528 | 146,366 | 127,797 | +23.3% | −13.6% |
| Thu., Oct. 15 (19) | 171,567 | 164,283 | 138,383 | 123,017 | +24.0% | −4.7% |
| Fri., Oct. 16 (18) | 189,048 | 180,882 | 156,513 | 141,774 | +20.8% | +0.7% |
| Sat., Oct. 17 (17) | 95,368 | 91,415 | 86,837 | 80,309 | +9.8% | +1.7% |
| Sun., Oct. 18 (16) | 25,328 | 24,809 | 18,764 | 18,113 | +35.0% | +2.4% |
| Mon., Oct. 19 (15) | 166,320 | 155,260 | 154,160 | 133,499 | +7.9% | +3.3% |
| Tue., Oct. 20 (14) | 159,148 | 150,929 | 136,564 | 125,664 | +16.5% | +4.9% |
| Wed., Oct. 21 (13) | 143,367 | 135,760 | 133,065 | 119,663 | +7.7% | +5.2% |
| Thu., Oct. 22 (12) | 136,552 | 128,536 | 124,893 | 112,163 | +9.3% | +5.5% |
| Fri., Oct. 23 (11) | 163,050 | 158,120 | 150,236 | 139,587 | +8.5% | +5.8% |
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Each 2026 day is compared with the 2022 day the same number of days before Election Day. The running total includes 2022’s extra first day, Mon., Oct. 17, 2022. 2022 counts from Oct. 24, 2022 include estimated Gwinnett ballots.
Inside the Metro Atlanta Core counties
The Metro Atlanta Core counties cast 39.5% of Georgia’s accepted early ballots from Oct. 13 to Oct. 23, up 1.7 points from 37.8% on the same days of 2022. That is 642,559 of the state’s 1,627,123 ballots, against 525,930 of 1,392,556 in 2022. On the running total, which includes 2022’s extra first day, their share is 39.4%, up 1.5 points from 37.9%.
What it means. The Metro Atlanta Core is a growing part of the early vote, and the growth is in Cobb and Gwinnett. Cobb’s share is 8.4%, up 0.8 points from 7.6%, and Gwinnett’s 8.0%, up 0.7 points from 7.2%. Fulton (12.1%), DeKalb (8.4%) and Clayton (2.5%) hold their 2022 shares, so their ballots are growing at about the statewide rate. The Metro Atlanta Core share is rising because the other 154 counties slowed: they were 6.5% ahead of 2022 from Oct. 19 to 23, against 16.0% for the Metro Atlanta Core. Gwinnett’s 2022 share from Oct. 24 is partly estimated.
How to read this table: each row is a county. The first columns give its share of Georgia’s accepted early ballots on the eleven shared days in 2026 and 2022, and the bar shows the change in points. The running-total shares and the growth in ballots follow.
| County | Ballots, Oct. 13 to 23, 2026 | Share of Georgia’s ballots, 2026 | 2022 | Change in share, points | Running total share, 2026 | 2022 | Change in ballots from 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fulton | 197,495 | 12.1% | 12.2% | 0.0 | 12.1% | 12.2% | +16.6% |
| DeKalb | 137,171 | 8.4% | 8.4% | +0.1 | 8.4% | 8.4% | +17.8% |
| Cobb | 136,719 | 8.4% | 7.6% | +0.8 | 8.4% | 7.6% | +28.9% |
| Clayton | 41,476 | 2.5% | 2.4% | +0.1 | 2.5% | 2.5% | +23.9% |
| Gwinnett | 129,698 | 8.0% | 7.2% | +0.7 | 7.9% | 7.1% | +28.9% |
| Metro ATL Core | 642,559 | 39.5% | 37.8% | +1.7 | 39.4% | 37.9% | +22.2% |
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Share of Georgia’s accepted early ballots on the same days: Tue., Oct. 13 to Fri., Oct. 23, 2026 against Tue., Oct. 18 to Fri., Oct. 28, 2022. Running total share: all ballots accepted through Oct. 23, 2026 against the same number of days until Election Day in 2022, which includes 2022’s extra first day. The last column is each area’s growth in ballots on the same days. 2022 counts from Oct. 24 include estimated Gwinnett ballots, so Gwinnett and the five-county total are partly estimated.
Cobb and Gwinnett account for 1.5 points of the Metro ATL Core counties’ 1.7-point gain in their share of Georgia’s early ballots, while Fulton and DeKalb are level with 2022
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Each county’s share of Georgia’s accepted early ballots from Tue., Oct. 13 through each day, minus its share on the same days of 2022 (Tue., Oct. 18 on), in percentage points. 2022 counts from Oct. 24, 2022 (the Oct. 19 point on) include estimated Gwinnett ballots.
How to read this table: each period shows the change in a county’s share of Georgia’s accepted early ballots from the same days of 2022, in points. Week 1 is the first six days of voting, Oct. 13 to 18, and week 2 is Oct. 19 to 23. Bars to the right mean a larger share than in 2022. What to notice: the five-county gain is larger in week 2 than week 1, and Gwinnett’s Friday gain is the largest.
| County | Week 1, Oct. 13 to 18, change in share (points) | Week 2, Oct. 19 to 23 | Friday, Oct. 23 | Share of Friday’s ballots, 2026 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fulton | −0.4 | +0.3 | +0.8 | 11.7% | 11.0% |
| DeKalb | +0.2 | −0.1 | 0.0 | 7.8% | 7.8% |
| Cobb | +0.9 | +0.7 | −0.1 | 8.4% | 8.5% |
| Clayton | +0.1 | +0.2 | +0.2 | 2.1% | 1.9% |
| Gwinnett | +0.7 | +0.8 | +1.2 | 8.2% | 7.0% |
| Metro ATL Core | +1.3 | +2.0 | +2.2 | 38.3% | 36.1% |
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Each period’s share of Georgia’s accepted ballots is compared with the same days of 2022: Oct. 13 to 18 against Oct. 18 to 23, 2022; Oct. 19 to 23 against Oct. 24 to 28, 2022; Friday against Fri., Oct. 28, 2022. Bars to the right mean a larger share than in 2022. 2022 counts from Oct. 24 include estimated Gwinnett ballots.
The Metro Atlanta Core counties’ early electorate is more Democratic, more Hispanic and more Asian than on the same days of 2022. Democratic-primary voters are 50.6% of Cobb’s early ballots, up from 41.7%, and 52.0% of Gwinnett’s, up from 43.8%. Hispanic voters are 7.3% of Gwinnett’s early ballots, up from 3.7%, and Asian voters 7.9%, up from 5.2%. White voters have fallen to 54.0% of Cobb’s ballots from 60.2%.
How to read this table: each cell is a group’s share of the county’s accepted early ballots from Oct. 13 to 23, 2026, with the same days of 2022 in parentheses. What to notice: Democratic-primary and Hispanic shares are up in every county, and Clayton and DeKalb are the most heavily Democratic-primary and Black.
| Share of accepted early ballots | Fulton | DeKalb | Cobb | Clayton | Gwinnett |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic-primary voters | 62.3% (54.5%) | 74.4% (67.6%) | 50.6% (41.7%) | 75.2% (70.5%) | 52.0% (43.8%) |
| Republican-primary voters | 19.5% (24.7%) | 9.9% (14.0%) | 32.7% (41.4%) | 7.2% (9.6%) | 26.2% (35.9%) |
| Black voters | 40.0% (35.6%) | 48.8% (47.3%) | 29.1% (25.5%) | 78.1% (74.9%) | 35.0% (29.7%) |
| White voters | 43.1% (47.2%) | 37.1% (38.9%) | 54.0% (60.2%) | 8.3% (12.0%) | 38.9% (49.1%) |
| Hispanic voters | 2.7% (1.9%) | 2.6% (1.6%) | 4.5% (2.5%) | 3.3% (1.6%) | 7.3% (3.7%) |
| Asian voters | 4.0% (3.0%) | 3.1% (2.4%) | 3.2% (2.3%) | 2.0% (1.3%) | 7.9% (5.2%) |
| Voters 18 to 34 | 15.1% (15.0%) | 14.1% (13.8%) | 13.8% (11.8%) | 13.7% (11.8%) | 15.8% (12.8%) |
| Voters 65 and older | 35.0% (32.1%) | 37.2% (34.8%) | 38.7% (36.0%) | 36.8% (32.9%) | 35.7% (33.0%) |
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Share of accepted ballots, Tue., Oct. 13 to Fri., Oct. 23, 2026, with the same days of 2022 in parentheses. Race and age as recorded in each year’s voter file. Georgia has open primaries, so a last primary is not a measure of party loyalty. Shares of the groups shown do not add to 100% because other categories are omitted. 2022 shares from Oct. 24 include estimated Gwinnett ballots, so Gwinnett’s 2022 shares are partly estimated.