Document Type

Editorial

Publication Date

9-21-2026

Abstract

Voting is the most basic act of democratic participation, yet for many Americans the hardest part is simply getting to the right place at the right time. Vote centers offer a way forward, but only with careful implementation. Vote centers are an alternative to assigned polling places, where jurisdictions host fewer voting locations but allow residents to vote at any location. While vote centers began roughly 20 years ago, most of the adopters shifted to vote centers after the COVID pandemic in 2020.Our research team has compiled a database of jurisdictions that have adopted vote centers. We have documented at least 625 counties serving over 69 million registered voters (roughly 30% of the nation's electorate) in 19 states that have implemented vote centers for Election Day Our website and database provide critical information for researchers and practitioners, finding that tens of millions of voters cast their ballots in jurisdictions that use Election Day vote centers. - Excerpt

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