TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) - Turnout is on the upswing since the Democratic party in Kansas switched from a presidential caucus to an all-mail primary.
With several days of voting left to go, the party already had processed 138,430 ballots as of Monday evening, The Kansas City Star reports. That is compared to a turnout of 39,266 voters in 2016, when caucus goers went for Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders over former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Voters have until Saturday to get their ballots to party headquarters.
The spike in turnout occurred despite Sanders dropping out this month and endorsing former Vice President Joe Biden, the party’s presumptive nominee.
Democrats made the decision last year to drop the caucus format, which required voters to meet and split into groups. The party already was taking steps to encourage mail voting, but switched to an entirely mail-in ballot after COVID-19 raised safety concerns. Every registered Democrat in the state - more than 400,000 people - received a ballot.
“The record-breaking turnout for the 2020 Presidential Primary is testament to the growing enthusiasm and cohesion of Democrats to make Donald Trump a one-term President,” Kansas Democratic Party Chair Vicki Hiatt said in a statement.
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