The majority of Montanans have already cast their votes. Otherwise, the polling stations close at 8:00 p.m. • Daily Montanan

It's finally Election Day and polls in Montana opened at 7 a.m. However, the majority of registered voters will stay home.

As of Monday evening, there were 792,440 registered voters in Montana and more than 54% of these voters have already cast their vote by letter or early in person. The Montana Secretary of State's Office showed that county election offices had received 431,636 mail-in ballots before Election Day.

“Friends, family and neighbors across the state made sure their voices were heard in this historic election,” Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen said in a news release Monday.

During the last presidential election, Montanans cast 612,075 votes, the highest number of votes in the state's history, with a turnout of 81.33%, a 30-year high, according to the Secretary of State's Office.

Montana will set a new general election record when just 50% of registered voters who have not yet cast a ballot show up to vote today.

The high number of early voters in the state reflects a national trend. The Washington Post reports that more than 81.9 million Americans had already voted as of Monday, which is second only to 2020, when many states expanded voting options during the pandemic. South Carolina, Delaware and Connecticut reported exceeding their early voting numbers in 2020, while six others reported being in the 90th percentile.

While Montana allows any active voter to register for an absentee ballot to vote by mail, during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, 98% of voters chose to vote by mail. In 2024, 68% of registered voters requested absentee ballots. Postal voters can also hand in their ballot in person at a polling station or election office on election day.

Montana allows eligible citizens to register to vote on Election Day as long as they line up at a polling place before 8 p.m

Polling places in Montana are required by law to be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. in most cases, but smaller polling places may be open from noon to 8 p.m

“Montanans who wish to cast their vote in person can check the hours and location of their polling place online at VoteMT.gov/voter-info,” said Secretary Jacobsen. “Winter weather is forecast on Election Day, so make a plan, drive carefully and join hundreds of thousands of Montanans in electing the leaders of our great state and nation.”