Report shows big spike in mail ballots during 2020 election

By CHRISTINA A. CASSIDY
Associated Press

ATLANTA (AP) — A new report shows fewer than one-third of voters who cast ballots in last year’s U.S. presidential election did so at a polling place on Election Day as the coronavirus pandemic led states to greatly expand mail-in balloting and early voting. While mail voting has been on the rise in recent years, the 2020 election marked a major shift in the way people cast ballots, at least temporarily. The report by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission said it was the first time in the history of the survey that a majority of voters did not cast their ballots in person on Election Day.