Orange County Election Data Brief: The trend continues for young voters and vote-by-mail ballots

November 5, 2016 - With nearly half-a-million ballots returned through the mail, young voters are sitting this election out - at least for now. Just 6% (22,632) of ballots have been returned by voters 18-25 years old. Here's the overall breakdown:

• 6%, 22,6432, have been returned by 18-25 year olds
• 9%, 34,181, have been returned by 26-35 year olds
• 10%, 40,051, by 36-45 year olds
• 16%, 65,135 by 46-55 year olds
• 22%, 87,688 by 56-65 year olds
• 38%, 149,998 by 66+ year olds

Clearly the most active demographic - voters 66+ in age are making sure their vote is cast early. This is good news overall - nearly 50% of Orange County's vote-by-mail voters have cast their ballot early. This will ensure they don't have to wait in line on Election Day, which could see record turnout.