A whopping 72% of likely voters tell the Public Policy Institute of California that they are more enthusiastic than usual about voting in this year’s presidential election. A record high for the PPIC poll, and one underscored by the fact that more than 4.5 million Californians have already cast ballots with Election Day still nearly two weeks away.
And the trends hold across party lines. The poll, conducted between October 9 and 18, finds 79% of Democrats, 74% of Republicans and 59% of independent voters say they are more zealous about voting than usual.
PPIC President Mark Baldassare said the presidential race appears to be driving voter interest.
“The enthusiasm among Democrats, Republicans, independents (is) all 20 points or more higher than it was at this time before the last presidential election,” he said. “And, you know, we had a pretty good turnout there, too. But this is just like off the charts.”