Most Election Jurisdictions Have Small Populations

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Most Election Jurisdictions Have Small Populations

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Recent data confirm previous research showing that most election jurisdictions have a relatively small electorate.

According to information from Kimball Brace, president of Election Data Services Inc., there are 10,072 election jurisdictions in the United States:

  • 5,312 of these are small, township-level jurisdictions in three Midwestern states: Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
  • Another 1,620 are townships in four New England states: Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont.
  • The remaining 3,140 local election jurisdictions are counties in states across the country.

Two-thirds — 6,691 — of all election jurisdictions have less than 5,000 registered voters, while only 340 jurisdictions have more than 100,000 registered voters. The mean registered population of all jurisdictions is 1,492 voters. 

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