ORINDA, California. – Nearly 70 million people have already voted in the election, more than a third of the total number of people who voted four years ago.

Several Bay Area counties, including Contra Costa County, are reporting high turnout in early voting.

Voters dropped off their ballots in front of Orinda City Hall Saturday morning.

Josh Witherspoon said he usually votes early to get around any potential lines on Election Day.

He is one of approximately 6 million Californians who voted early.

“I think human decency is probably our biggest priority,” Witherspoon said regarding her top concerns. “We have a daughter and are raising our daughter and I think having a leader that cares more about the country than themselves and I think it’s pretty easy to figure out that person and who that person is.”

“Women’s rights, abortion and public school funding,” Moraga resident Katrina Harrar said. “Israel is an important subject.”

“Prices at the gas station, prices at the grocery store, employment rates, those are pretty important issues to me,” said Neil Pretlow of Orinda.

Although in-person early voting is breaking records in some battleground states like North Carolina and Georgia, early voting turnout is not as strong as it was in 2020, due to of the pandemic.

This time around, the stakes seem higher, according to many voters we spoke with, including Ruth Levitch of Berkeley.

“We have friends canvassing, friends writing postcards, everyone is feeling anxious,” she said. “Definitely engaged, but lots of worry.”

Democrats held a wide advantage over Republicans in early voting four years ago, but that gap is narrowing this time around.

This year’s high turnout was partly explained by the Trump campaign encouraging early voting.

In California, so far, slightly more Republican mail-in voters have returned their ballots than Democrats.

“I got my vote in as soon as my ballot came in the mail, I just want my opinion out there, heard and counted. It’s convenient, so that was an important factor for me,” said Pretlow.

This year, women outperformed men in early voting, according to the results of the first ballots.

In California, the first wave of mail-in voting results will appear on the state’s website shortly after polls close at 8 p.m. on November 5.