What is the current voting-age population of the United States (age 18+) in 2024?
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Executive summary
The most defensible figure in the available reporting for the United States citizen voting‑age population (18+) in 2024 is roughly 236–238 million people, a range supported by multiple Census‑based products and secondary analyses; that number underlies reported registration and turnout percentages published after the 2024 election (Census CPS tables) [1][2][3]. Reporting differs by definition — total voting‑age population (VAP), citizen voting‑age population (CVAP) and voting‑eligible population (VEP) — and those definitional differences explain small but meaningful gaps between sources [4][5].
1. What the headline numbers say and how they’re derived
The Census Bureau’s post‑2024 voting and registration tables show 73.6% of the citizen voting‑age population equaled 174 million registered voters, and 65.3% equaled 154 million voters, which implies a citizen voting‑age population near 237 million in 2024 when those percentages are back‑calculated from the published counts (174 ÷ 0.736 ≈ 236.96 million; 154 ÷ 0.653 ≈ 235.9 million) and those tables are the principal source for these national estimates [1][2].
2. Why similar reports sometimes quote different totals
Different research products use different denominators: the Voting‑Age Population (VAP) counts all residents 18 and older; the Citizen Voting‑Age Population (CVAP) counts citizens 18+; and the Voting‑Eligible Population (VEP) subtracts ineligible groups such as non‑citizens and, in some calculations, disenfranchised felons — and then may add overseas eligible voters — so depending on which of those an analyst uses, totals will diverge by millions [4][5][6].
3. Secondary sources and mapping products that reinforce the 236–238M range
Analysts and mapping products that focus on citizen voters report a U.S. CVAP on the order of “just over 238 million” potential eligible voters for 2024, a figure consistent with the Census‑based CPS turnout/registration percentages and with other public reporting that frames registration as roughly three‑quarters of that pool [3][1].
4. Official government tabulations and the Federal Register notice
Official federal publications provide state‑level VAP and related estimates; for example, the Census and Department of Commerce certified voting‑age estimates for mid‑2023 were published in the Federal Register in March 2024 as the basis for certain legal and administrative uses, underscoring that the government routinely produces year‑by‑year VAP/CVAP figures though the Federal Register notice itself lists state tables rather than a single rounded national headline used in election press releases [7].
5. How survey methodology and definitions affect headline precision
The Census CPS Voting and Registration Supplement, the source for the 174M/154M counts and the 73.6%/65.3% rates, surveys the civilian non‑institutionalized population and explicitly notes its estimates may differ from administrative tallies or exit polls because of survey nonresponse, vote misreporting and question wording — that caveat explains why back‑calculated totals are best given as a range rather than an absolute single number [1][8].
6. Bottom line and caveats for journalists and researchers
For practical purposes — reporting registration or turnout rates for the November 2024 presidential election — the citizen voting‑age population in 2024 is most reliably stated at roughly 236–238 million, with the exact figure depending on whether one cites CPS‑derived CVAP, Census vintage estimates, or VEP adjustments for ineligible residents; data users should always name the definition used (CVAP vs VAP vs VEP) because that choice changes interpretation and comparative claims [1][4][5].