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What percentage of eligible US voters voted in 2024?
Executive summary
Official and reputable post-election analyses put 2024 turnout between about 64% and 65.3% of the eligible U.S. electorate: the University of Florida Election Lab and related reporting cite roughly 64% for the Voting‑Eligible Population (VEP) [1] [2], while the Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey reports 65.3% of the voting‑age population voted [3]. Different methods and denominators (VEP vs. VAP or registered voters) explain most of the variation in headline turnout figures [2] [3].
1. What headline numbers mean — two common denominators
When reporters say “64% voted” they are usually referring to turnout as a share of the voting‑eligible population (VEP), which excludes noncitizens and other ineligible adults; that 64% figure is what the University of Florida Election Lab and several news outlets reported as a preliminary VEP estimate for 2024 [1] [2]. The Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey (CPS) uses the voting‑age population (VAP) or respondent reports and produced a 65.3% figure in its Voting and Registration tables — a different measurement approach that yields a slightly higher percentage [3]. State‑level calculations and exit polls can produce still other percentages because they use different numerators (ballots counted vs. votes for president) and denominators (registered voters vs. VAP/VEP) [2] [4].
2. Why numbers differ: methodology matters
Experts stress that turnout rates vary depending on whether you measure registered voters, the voting‑age population (VAP), or the voting‑eligible population (VEP). The UF Election Lab constructs VEP by subtracting ineligible populations (noncitizens, felons depending on state laws) from the VAP and uses ballots counted as the numerator — producing the commonly cited ~64% VEP rate [2]. The CPS Voting and Registration supplement surveys the civilian noninstitutionalized population and reports 65.3% voted in 2024, reflecting the CPS methodology and its sampling frame [3]. The differences of roughly 1 to 2 percentage points are expected and reflect these technical choices [2] [3].
3. How 2024 compares to recent elections
Across major analyses, 2024 turnout was very high by modern standards but slightly below the pandemic‑year peak of 2020. Pew Research frames 2020 at 66% (the highest since 1908) and 2024 at about 64% (the second highest, tied with 1960), which aligns with UF and news estimates around 64% VEP [5] [1]. USAFacts and the Census CPS put 2024 at 65.3% [6] [3]. Analysts describe 2024 as among the highest turnout elections of the past century even if it dipped modestly from 2020 [5] [7].
4. Who drove turnout changes — partisan and demographic angles
Multiple organizations find turnout shifts were uneven. Pew says Republican‑leaning eligible voters were more likely to turn out in 2024 than Democratic‑leaning ones, and that differential turnout played a larger role than switching allegiances in shaping results [8] [9]. Catalist and other groups report turnout fell less in Republican areas than in Democratic areas, and white turnout remained higher than turnout among many voters of color [10]. Youth turnout declined from 2020 levels but remained substantial in some states, with CIRCLE revising youth turnout estimates upward relative to early exit polls [11].
5. State variation and raw ballots cast
National percentages mask big state differences: Ballotpedia and UF data show states like Minnesota and Wisconsin had turnout in the mid‑70s, while states such as Hawaii and Oklahoma were much lower [4]. In raw counts, AP and PBS noted “more than 140 million” ballots cast in 2024, a figure that underpins these national percentages depending on which denominator is used [12] [1].
6. What to watch when interpreting turnout claims
Journalistic and academic caution: check the denominator (VEP vs. VAP vs. registered voters), the numerator (ballots counted vs. votes for president), and whether figures are preliminary or final [2] [3]. Different organizations emphasize different angles — UF Election Lab on VEP estimates [2], the Census CPS on representative survey-based estimates [3], and think tanks or advocacy groups on demographic or geographic variations [10] [4].
7. Bottom line and unresolved questions
Available, reputable post‑election reporting and official tables place 2024 turnout around 64% of the voting‑eligible population and about 65.3% by CPS measures of the voting‑age population [1] [3]. If you need a single figure for comparison with historical turnout, cite the VEP-based ~64% [2] [1]; if you prefer the Census survey frame, use 65.3% [3]. For further precision, consult the UF Election Lab, Census CPS tables, and state certified returns to see exact final counts and the specific methodological choices behind each headline number [2] [3] [4].