In this episode, our panel of Election Law experts: Steve, Terri, Tony, and Matt, break down the latest findings from the MIT Election Data + Science Lab’s 2024 Survey of the Performance of American Elections (SPAE).

Part One dives into key takeaways from the SPAE report, including:

• The evolving role of vote-by-mail post-pandemic
• Record-breaking voter turnout in 2020 and 2024
• Improvements in wait times for both early and Election Day voting
• The ongoing partisan divide in mail voting behavior

Part Two explores the topic of mid-decade redistricting. With President Trump urging Texas governor and legislature to redistrict in advance of the 2026 midterms, states across the political spectrum are discussing the possibility of adopting the very unusual practice of redistricting in the middle of a decade. Our experts unpack the legal, political, and democratic implications and what it could mean for future
elections.

Stay tuned for future episodes as we continue to track this developing story.

Key Data Points from the 2024 SPAE Report:

• Voting by mail: The use of mail ballots in 2024 decreased from pandemic-era levels but stayed above historical norms. The percentage of voters casting ballots by mail decreased to 29%, down from 43% in 2020 but up from 21% in 2016.
• The 2020 and 2024 presidential contests were among the highest-turnout elections in the past century. The 66% turnout rate in 2020 was the highest since 1908, and 2024’s rate of 64% was the second highest, tied with 1960. The last two midterm elections also featured unusually high turnout levels, with rates not seen since the 1960s.
• Average wait times for both Election Day and early voters decreased. Eleven percent of voters on Election Day waited over 30 minutes to cast their ballots, compared to 14% in 2020. Fifteen percent of early voters experienced wait times exceeding 30 minutes, a decrease from 21% in 2020.
• The partisan divide in mail voting continued, with more Democrats than Republicans utilizing this method, although the gap narrowed because of declining usage among Democrats.

Resources & References:

• MIT Election Lab Report: How We Voted in 2024: https://electionlab.mit.edu/research/…
• Pew Research: Voter Turnout 2020–2024: https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/…