Local enthusiasm for this year’s general and municipal elections are up, if registrations in Shelby County are any indication.
According to the Shelby County Election Commission, over 600,000 area voters intend to cast ballots on November 5.
Moreover, the numbers could also reflect a large turnout from younger voters.
Of the ages groups represented, 28-37 and 38-47 led the way. Their collective 221,675 registrations comprised 37% of the total. They are followed by the 58-67 age group, who netted 92,477. The 48-57 age group came in a close fourth, with 92,477.
The 18-27 age group came in fifth, with 78,334 registrations. However, its final total was down from a September count as voters aged out of one bracket and into another.
The median age for the county’s registered voters is 49.
The numbers become a little more cut and dry when split by gender. Women continue to make up a clear majority with 57.5% of all registrations.
The breakdown by race isn’t as clear. A majority of the county’s likely voters failed to disclose their race, or marked it as “other” when registering. The state does not require voters to reveal their race.
Of the nearly 44.8% who did disclose their race, Black voters make up a plurality 163,171, or 27.2%. White voters trailed with 103,701 registrations. Hispanic and Chinese, meanwhile, pulled in 0.32% and 0.02% respectively.
All totalled, the 600,160 figure gives Shelby County the largest concentration of registered voters in the state.
However, the numbers don’t reflect the partisan split between the Democrat-heavy urban areas and the Republican-slanted suburbs. The state does not release county-by-county partisan registration numbers.
Unlike off-year elections, general elections typically draw a majority of the county’s voters to the polls. However, the last time a majority of Shelby County voters turned out vote was during the 2018 congressional midterm election.
Local registration efforts wrap up on Monday, Oct. 7. Early voting begins on Wednesday, Oct. 16 and runs through Oct. 31.
The election is headlined by a race that pits Vice President Kamala Harris against Republican nominee former President Donald Trump in an open contest for the seat. Harris was a last minute replacement for President Joe Biden, after the 81-year-old called it quits following a disastrous June debate performance.
Biden defeated then-incumbent Trump in the 2020 contest. If elected, Harris would be the first female president and the second person of color. She is of both Jamaican and Indian heritage.
