With just one day until Election Day, more than 2 million Coloradans have voted so far, according to the latest numbers; That represents just under half of the state’s registered voters.

Of the votes cast so far, 29 percent were cast by Democrats, 27 percent by Republicans, 42 percent by independent voters and 0.17 percent by members of the American Constitution Party. Almost 97% of ballots returned so far have been sent by mail.

Participation this year is significantly lower than in 2020. But that may be because people are more likely to vote by mail rather than in person because of the pandemic. Voter turnout in this election is significantly higher than in the 2022 midterms, which is typical for the presidential election cycle.

It is also notable that the number of votes cast by unaffiliated voters has already exceeded the number of Democrats who have voted so far in 2020. This shift can be attributed, at least in part, to the state’s voting policy. automatic voter registration The system, which came into effect in 2021, registers new voters as unaffiliated unless they choose to affiliate with a party.

A total of 3,291,661 votes were cast by Coloradans in the 2020 election, a turnout rate of over 86%.