Preliminary figures suggest fewer people voted this year than four years ago, when voters shattered turnout records as they elected Obama to his first term.
In most states, the numbers are shaping up to be even lower than in
2004, said
Preliminary figures suggest fewer people voted this year than four years ago, when voters shattered turnout records as they elected Obama to his first term.
In most states, the numbers are shaping up to be even lower than in
2004, said Curtis Gans, the director of American University's Center for
the Study of the American Electorate.
Still, the full picture may not be known for weeks, because much of the counting takes place after Election Day.
"By and large, people didn't show up," Gans said.
With 95 percent of precincts reporting, The Associated Press figures showed more than 117 million people had voted in the White House race, but that number will go up as more votes are counted. In 2008, 131 million people voted, according to the Federal Election Commission.
Experts calculate turnout in different ways based on who they consider eligible voters. A separate, preliminary estimate from George Mason University's Michael McDonald put the 2012 turnout rate at 60 percent of eligible voters.
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That figure was expected to be revised as more precincts reported and absentee votes were counted.
The biggest plunge by far, according to the American University
analysis, came in Eastern Seaboard states still reeling from the
devastation from Superstorm Sandy, which wiped out power for millions
and disrupted usual voting routines.
Fifteen percent fewer voters cast
ballots in New York this year than in 2008. In New Jersey, it was almost
The gap in New Jersey could narrow in the coming days because elections officials have given displaced residents in some areas until Friday to cast special email ballots.
Best efforts be darned, making it to the polls in the wake of Sandy