At 26%, Colorado Sees Lower Turnout Ahead Of Election Day Than In Last Midterm

By Sara Wilson, Colorado Newsline

November 3, 2022

Coloradans have returned 981,210 ballots as of midnight on Wednesday, according to data released by the secretary of state’s office Thursday afternoon.

With five days until the general election, that means about 26% of the state’s active registered voters have sent their ballots in or voted in person.

It is a dip from the last midterm election in 2018, when at the same point before Election Day about 32% of active voters had returned their ballot. It’s an even more drastic decrease in relative voter turnout from the presidential election in 2020, when over 55% of active voters had returned their ballots five days before the big day. Midterms generally see a lower turnout than presidential elections.

The largest decrease in turnout between 2018 and this year is among Republican voters. At this point in 2018, about 35% of returned ballots came from Republicans. This year, it’s about 29%.

Unaffiliated voter turnout share has seen an increase, with about 30% in 2018 and 37% this year.

About 33% of the returned ballots this year are from Democratic voters.

The rate of return increased around Oct. 30.

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