Voting began early in Miami, Florida, on Monday, October 18. The Miami Dade County election headquarters is just one out of 20 poll precincts that is making early voting available today. (Photo: © Yesikka Vivancos/AP Wide World/EPA)

Monday, October 18—Election Day isn't until November 2, but some voters are already heading to the polls. Early voting was approved for Florida after the 2000 elections, when 537 votes from the state determined the outcome of the election.

And Florida is not the only early voting state. Residents of Texas, Arkansas, and Colorado started voting today. Voters in Wisconsin, Iowa, Nevada, Ohio, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Michigan have already started casting their votes for President and local races.

Early voting allows voters to avoid waiting in long lines on Election Day. "What's important is that you vote. I didn't want to get in all the hoopla with all the turnout on Election Day," said Steve Perez, a Florida voter.

States with early voting give residents more opportunity to cast their vote. "Those who aren't as committed or haven't voted before, this early voting makes it convenient for them. I think it's going to increase voter turnout. There are no excuses for not voting," said Dianne Bystrom, director of the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics at Iowa State University.

The time between now and November 2 will give officials more time to deal with any voting problems, such as the hanging chads that caused trouble four years ago. Florida now has touch-screen voting machines in much of its state, but that, too, is causing a controversy. Some voters are afraid hackers can affect the outcome of the election.

Picking a President

President Bush and Senator John Kerry stopped in the Sunshine State over the weekend to urge residents to vote.

"[Early voting is] going to be changing the way candidates campaign because they have to get their message out to people two to three weeks earlier than in the past," said Palm Beach County elections supervisor Theresa LaPore.

Although early voting can mean avoiding long lines and ballot problems, it also means that voters have to choose a candidate earlier.

"As long as people vote, we're happy. But if something bad happens about a candidate two days before an election, you can't change your vote," LaPore said.

Readers of Scholastic News and Junior Scholastic have been voting in a mock election poll all fall. That poll closes today at 7 p.m. Be sure to check Scholastic News Online on Thursday to see how you voted!