Montgomery Early Voting Finishes Up 66.6% Over 2022, 40% Below 2024’s Presidential Turnout

Montgomery County voters cast 93,190 early ballots in this year’s general election, according to final turnout data posted by the Maryland State Board of Elections. That is up 66.6% from the 55,942 ballots the county cast during early voting in 2022, the state’s last gubernatorial general election. Both totals cover all eight days of early voting, Oct. 22-29, 2026, and Oct. 27-Nov. 3, 2022, the comparable period in each election under Maryland’s early-voting schedule.

Montgomery Community Media reported Oct. 28 that the county had already topped its full 2022 early-voting total before voting even ended, with 60,194 ballots cast through Tuesday, Oct. 27.

Younger and unaffiliated voters drove the increase

The state board’s voter file breaks early ballots down by age group. These are counts of ballots cast, not turnout rates among each age group’s registered voters:

Age group	2026	2022	Change
18-24	5,245	2,067	+153.7%
25-44	19,130	10,011	+91.1%
45-64	34,663	23,401	+48.1%
65 and older	34,152	20,463	+66.9%
Total	93,190	55,942	+66.6%

Voters age 18-24 cast 5,245 early ballots this year, up from 2,067 in 2022. Every age group’s early-vote total increased, with voters under 45 gaining the most.

Party breakdown

By party, registered Democrats cast 66,238 early ballots, up 70.9% from 38,753 in 2022. Registered Republicans cast 10,097, up 21.8% from 8,289. Unaffiliated voters, who cannot vote in Maryland’s primaries but can in the general election, cast 16,168 early ballots, up 90.8% from 8,474. Voters registered with another party, including the Green, Libertarian and Working Class parties, cast 687 combined, up 61.3% from 426.

Busiest centers and biggest gains

The Activity Center at Bohrer Park in Gaithersburg was the county’s busiest early-voting center, with 10,349 ballots cast, up 83.1% from 5,651 in 2022. One center more than doubled its 2022 turnout: the White Oak Community Recreation Center, with 3,030 ballots, up 110.1% from 1,442. Three more centers gained more than 80%: the Wheaton Library and Community Recreation Center (9,510 ballots, up 94.7% from 4,884), the Bauer Drive Community Recreation Center (5,710 ballots, up 88.9% from 3,022) and the Nancy H. Dacek Community Recreation Center (4,578 ballots, up 82.3% from 2,511).

How this year compares with 2022 and 2024

Measured against each year’s pool of eligible active voters, Montgomery’s 93,190 early ballots this year represent 13.31% of the county’s 700,314 eligible active voters, compared with 8.31% of 673,373 eligible active voters in 2022.

Montgomery’s 2026 early vote falls short of the 156,468 ballots the county cast during early voting in the 2024 presidential general election, a drop of 40.4%, and 22.89% of 683,515 eligible active voters that year. That comparison is context rather than a like-for-like match: 2024 had a presidential race at the top of the ballot.

Statewide, Maryland voters cast 604,396 early ballots this year, up 58.2% from 381,972 in 2022 and down 39.2% from 994,663 in 2024. Montgomery’s share of the state’s early vote has stayed within about a point across all three elections:

Election	Montgomery early vote	Maryland early vote	Montgomery’s share
2022 gubernatorial general	55,942	381,972	14.65%
2024 presidential general	156,468	994,663	15.73%
2026 gubernatorial general	93,190	604,396	15.42%

As of 6 p.m. Oct. 29, the state board had sent Montgomery County voters 140,726 mail-in ballots and received 76,015 back, or 54.0%, leaving 64,711 outstanding, according to the board’s mail-in ballot tracking report.

What’s next

• Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3. Polls are open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. at each voter’s assigned polling place.
• Voters with an unreturned mail-in ballot should use a secure drop box rather than the mail. Drop boxes close at 8 p.m. Nov. 3, and a mailed ballot must be postmarked by Nov. 3.
• Moderately MOCO’s voting page has polling place lookup, drop box locations and other Election Day information.

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