Washington Voter Turnout Nears 65% As Election Day Approaches

OLYMPIA, WA — In the final days leading up to the Nov. 3 election, Washington voters are maintaining a record pace, with 64.8 percent of ballots returned by late Friday afternoon. By comparison, just 41 percent of voters had cast ballots at the same point in the 2016 presidential election.

According to the Secretary of State's office, Washington's 39 counties have already received ballots from at least 3,155,177 of the state's 4,871,299 registered voters — a number beyond the total number of ballots received by Election Day in 2016.

This year, elections officials are projecting record voter participation, including in King County, where the director of elections challenged voters to hit the 90 percent mark. By Friday, King County was within 23 percentage points of that goal, and the city of Seattle neared 72 percent.

Leading the pack now is Jefferson County, where turnout hit 77.5 percent Friday.

Here are the top 10 counties for voter participation, by percentage (as of Oct. 30)

1. Jefferson County: 77.5 percent (21,428 ballots)
2. Columbia County: 75.7 percent (2,139 ballots)
3. Pacific County: 72 percent (11,984 ballots)
4. Ferry County: 71.9 percent (3,716 ballots)
5. Lincoln County: 70.8 percent (5,673 ballots)
6. San Juan County: 70.5 percent (10,298 ballots)
7. Whatcom County: 69.9 percent (110,553 ballots)
8. Clallam County: 68.7 percent (39,537 ballots)
9. Kittitas County: 68.6 percent (20,706 ballots)
10. Chelan County: 68.4 percent (34,462 ballots)

In the state's three most populous counties, King leads with 66.8 percent turnout (950,399 ballots), followed by Snohomish at 64.1 percent (331,241 ballots) and Pierce at 60.5 percent (341,684 ballots).

Related coverage:

Election 2020 Voter Guide: What's On My Ballot In Pierce County?

Election 2020 Voter Guide: What's On The Ballot In King County

Friday was the last day recommended to send ballots via mail to ensure an on-time postmark. Ballots can be returned to official vote centers, and at hundreds of drop box locations across the state until the polls close Tuesday, Nov. 3, at 8 p.m. In Washington, voters who still need to register can do so, in-person, up until the last minute.

Related: 6 More Vote Centers Open In King County Saturday

Helpful links for voters:

King County

• Find your nearest vote center
• 24/7 drop box locations
• Voters' pamphlet
• General information from King County Elections

Pierce County

• Find the nearest drop box location
• Read the state and county voters' pamphlets
• Request a ballot replacement