COLUMBUS, Ga. - A total of 29,497 Muscogee County voters have cast early ballots in Georgia's 2026 general election, putting turnout 3.3% ahead of the comparable point in 2022. The total represents 20.9% of the county's 141,231 registered voters, according to GeorgiaVotes.com data updated Oct. 27. The figures include 27,115 people who voted early in person and 2,382 whose ballots were returned by mail.

The latest figures mark a change from the Columbus Times' Oct. 25 report, when Muscogee turnout was approximately 1% behind the 2022 pace. By the latest reporting point, the county had recorded 948 more early ballots than at the equivalent point four years earlier. GeorgiaVotes.com reported 28,549 ballots at that stage in 2022, compared with 29,497 in 2026.

The GeorgiaVotes.com update was timestamped 12:22 p.m. Oct. 27, with its latest daily chart entry dated Oct. 26. The figures therefore do not represent a complete count through Oct. 28. Advance voting continues through Friday, Oct. 30, at five Muscogee County locations.

How Muscogee Turnout Moved Ahead of 2022

The county's turnout comparison changed between Oct. 23 and Oct. 26, according to the GeorgiaVotes.com daily series. On Oct. 23, Muscogee had recorded 23,781 early ballots, compared with 25,090 at the equivalent point in 2022. That placed the county 1,309 ballots behind the earlier election's pace.

By Oct. 24, the difference had narrowed to 209 ballots, or approximately 0.8% below the 2022 total. On Oct. 25, the county moved slightly ahead, recording 26,695 ballots compared with 26,618 four years earlier. The difference increased to 948 ballots by Oct. 26, putting 2026 turnout approximately 3.3% above the comparable 2022 total.

The comparison aligns the elections by the same number of days remaining before Election Day rather than comparing calendar dates directly. GeorgiaVotes.com describes the latest county total as approximately 3% above the 2022 pace. Using the published totals, the difference of 948 divided by 28,549 equals approximately 3.3%.

Who Has Already Voted in Muscogee County

GeorgiaVotes.com also provides demographic information from the voting records used in its analysis. Of the 29,497 early voters, 16,139 were identified as Black, representing 54.7% of the total. Another 10,445 were identified as White, representing 35.4%.

The remaining reported racial categories included 713 Hispanic voters, 480 Asian voters and 1,720 voters classified as Other. By gender, 17,508 voters were listed as female, representing 59.4%, while 11,943 were listed as male, representing 40.5%. The records classified another 46 voters as having unknown gender.

Voters ages 65 and older accounted for the largest reported age group, with 13,832 ballots, or 46.9% of the county total. Those ages 50 through 64 accounted for another 8,080 ballots, representing 27.4%. The remaining reported groups included 3,123 voters ages 40 through 49, 2,167 ages 30 through 39, and 2,282 ages 18 through 29.

How 2026 Early Voters Participated in 2022

The GeorgiaVotes.com records also compare current early voters with their participation in the 2022 general election. Of Muscogee County's 29,497 early voters in 2026, 20,728 also voted early in the 2022 general election. That group represents 70.3% of the county's current early-voting total.

Another 3,266 people, representing 11.1%, voted on Election Day rather than early in the 2022 general election. The remaining 5,503 people did not vote in the 2022 general election, according to the site's comparison. Those three groups account for all 29,497 early voters reported in the current election.

These figures describe how the people who have already voted in 2026 participated in the previous general election. They do not measure the county's full Election Day turnout or establish the final number of ballots for 2026. The current figures cover only accepted ballots included in the GeorgiaVotes.com reporting data.

Georgia's Statewide Early Turnout

Across Georgia, 1,954,867 voters had cast ballots according to the same GeorgiaVotes.com update. That compares with 1,817,615 at the equivalent point in 2022, which the site describes as an increase of approximately 8%. The statewide count includes both early in-person voting and accepted mail ballots.

Of the statewide total, 1,863,648 ballots came from early in-person voting. Another 91,219 were mail ballots included in the reported count. The statewide comparison shows a larger percentage increase than Muscogee County's 3.3% increase over its comparable 2022 total.

Three Advance Voting Days Remain

Muscogee County's published advance voting schedule runs from Tuesday, Oct. 13, through Friday, Oct. 30. According to the county Elections and Registration Office, voting hours are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at each listed site. As of the Wednesday, Oct. 28 publication date, the remaining scheduled days are Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

Three sites have been available throughout the advance voting period, and two additional locations opened for Oct. 24 through Oct. 30. All five are scheduled to operate through the final advance voting day. The county lists the following locations and addresses.

The Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center is at the corner of E. Lindsay Drive and College Drive, according to the county flyer. Valley Healthcare and the Blackmon Road location are the two additional sites operating during the Oct. 24-30 period. Each location follows the same published 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. schedule.

Ballot Drop Box Closes at 7 P.M. Friday

The county's published schedule identifies one ballot collection drop box at the City Services Center, 3111 Citizens Way. The drop box is available during advance voting hours only, according to the Elections and Registration Office. Its scheduled closing time is 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30.

The county also requires photo identification for in-person voting under Georgia law, O.C.G.A. 21-2-417. A free Georgia voter identification card is available through the elections office. The office is located at 3111 Citizens Way and can be reached at 706-653-4392.

Absentee Ballot Processing and Election Day

The Board of Elections published a notice scheduling absentee ballot processing for Wednesday, Oct. 28, beginning at 1 p.m. and continuing until completion. The same notice schedules absentee ballot tabulation and adjudication to begin at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3. Advance voting ballots are also scheduled for tabulation at the City Services Center on Nov. 3.

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, following the close of advance voting on Oct. 30. The Georgia Secretary of State's voter information website is mvp.sos.ga.gov, which the county lists for voter status information. Muscogee County's Elections and Registration Office provides local election information at 706-653-4392.

## How we did this The Columbus Times used turnout figures from GeorgiaVotes.com, including its Muscogee County daily series and statewide totals, as updated Oct. 27, 2026, with the latest chart entry dated Oct. 26. GeorgiaVotes.com is not affiliated with the Georgia Secretary of State and compiles public absentee voting files from that office, counting ballots with an accepted status and a recorded ballot return date. We calculated the 3.3% turnout difference using the site's published 2026 and 2022 totals and compared those figures with our Oct. 25 report. Advance voting locations, operating hours, drop box information and ballot processing schedules came from official Muscogee County Elections and Registration materials published through ColumbusGA.gov and resources.columbusga.gov.