More than 437,000 Iowans had already cast ballots in the midterm election as Election Day neared, a total that topped early voting from the 2022 midterms and gave Democrats a live measure of how hard they had been pushing voters across the state.
That is why people are searching now for when do polls open on election day. If they have not voted yet, they still have one more day to act: an early ballot can be cast on Monday, or a vote can be cast on Tuesday on Election Day. For Democrats, the number is more than a turnout marker. It is proof that the race has already drawn a large share of voters into the process before the last day of voting begins.
Rita Hart said Democrats had knocked doors in every one of Iowa's 99 counties, and she said county parties had been reinvigorated in many of the smaller counties. She also said the Iowa Democratic Party had opened campaign offices in places that had not traditionally held one before, part of what she described as an effort to make sure every person was involved in this midterm election because it is such an important one.
The early numbers show Democrats with a slight edge so far. About 53,000 more Democrats had cast ballots than Republicans, and nearly 85,000 no-party voters had already voted. Hart said the work was built around one-on-one conversations, firing up people to show up, help volunteer and talk about what was on their minds.
That advantage still comes with a question that will not be answered until the final ballots are counted. Early voting has given Democrats a head start, but it does not guarantee that edge will survive the full turnout on Election Day. The last chance for anyone who has not voted is Monday, and then Tuesday is the day that decides whether the organizing push and early numbers translate into the result Democrats are hoping for.
