How many Alabamians didn't vote in 2024?

About 1.6 million. That's how many registered voters in Alabama didn't cast a ballot in the 2024 general election. Roughly 4 in 10.

According to the Alabama Secretary of State, the state had 3,861,929 registered voters in November 2024, and 2,272,911 of them voted. That leaves 1,589,018 people who were registered and stayed home. (That registration count includes "inactive" voters, some of whom may have moved.)

More than twice the margin

Donald Trump won Alabama by 690,204 votes. The number of registered voters who sat it out was more than twice that. Alabama gets called the reddest of red states, but a lot of that picture comes from who shows up, not from who lives here.

Close to home

In Madison County, where Huntsville is, 333,256 people were registered and 197,868 voted. About 135,000 registered neighbors stayed home in one county.

Who's showing up

Age makes a big difference. Fewer than half of eligible Alabamians under 35 voted in 2024. Among those 65 and older, about 7 in 10 did, according to Census survey data compiled by KFF.

Why it's harder here

Alabama has no early voting. Polls are open for 12 hours on Election Day, and voting absentee requires an excuse. If you work a long shift, care for kids, or don't have a ride, that window is tight. That doesn't explain every empty seat, but it explains some of them.

What this means

The gap between Alabama's results and Alabama's people is a gap of turnout. That's good news, because turnout can change. It changes one friend, one ride, and one reminder at a time.

If you're not sure you're registered, you can check your registration here in about a minute.

I dig into numbers like these across the whole South in my upcoming book, The Purple South. Get a heads-up when it's out.