Early voting in Delaware shatters records as tens of thousands wait in line to cast their ballots

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This story was supported by a statehouse coverage grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

The number of voters turning out to vote early in Delaware is so high that even the state’s highest profile voter, President Joe Biden, had to stand in line.

Long lines have formed at polling locations around the First State since early voting started Friday. Nearly 57,000 voters have cast their ballots in the first three days. Biden voted at the Department of Elections Warehouse in New Castle County on Monday, adding his vote to more than 3,228 ballots recorded at that polling location.

According to the University of Florida Election Lab, more than 43 million early votes have been cast nationally so far in next month’s general election.

Bear resident Matty Saine-Dukuray said she drove to the polling location at the Police Athletic League of Wilmington after seeing long lines at a polling location in Newark.

“The line was from here to Paris, so I came here,” she said. “I mean, it was probably like a two-to-three-hour wait.”

Saine-Dukuray, who voted on Saturday, got lucky. There was no line at the PAL facility so she could get in and out quickly.

State lawmakers passed a law in 2019 that allowed 10 days of early voting beginning in 2022. That law and a 2010 one that allowed permanent absentee voting were declared unconstitutional by a Superior Court judge in February, but both were restored by the Delaware Supreme Court in June.

Early voting turnout so far has already surpassed 55,655 votes, which was the total count of the entire 10-period of early voting for the 2022 midterm election cycle. This is the first presidential election where there’s early voting.

Elections department spokesperson Cathleen Hartsky-Carter said they’ve added some additional machines to some of the polling locations to help with the demand.

“The lines have been moving,” she said. “Even though they’re long, they’ve been moving.”

Turnout has been heaviest in Sussex County, where more than 30,300 votes have been cast. Voters have cast 16,965 ballots in New Castle County and 9,700 in Kent County.

Saine-Dukuray said she believes it’s important to vote. She said she cares about immigration because she came here from Gambia in 1988 as a student. She said while her children are grown, she’s concerned about the education her grandkids are getting.

“If you vote for the people that you want, at least they know what you’re looking for and what you want them to bring into your own community,” she said. “I mean, education is number one to everything.”

Hartsky-Carter said despite the lines, voting has been going smoothly.

“It’s been great. We haven’t had any significant issues with voters,” she said. “They have been very respectful and our election officers are handling the voting volume very well.”

Delawareans can vote early at these locations between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. through Tuesday. The hours extend from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. starting Wednesday and running through Nov. 3. Election Day is Nov. 5.