Early voting actually decreases election turnout, if implemented on its own

Politicians and commentators have been concerned about election turnout rates for decades, and there have been significant efforts to make voting easier in order to address this concern. Barry C. Burden, David T. Canon, Kenneth R. Mayer, and Donald P. Moynihan take a close look at the policy of early voting across the U.S. They find that, if implemented on its own, early voting has the effect of actually decreasing turnout, by robbing election day of its otherwise stimulating effect on nonvoters and marginal voters. The authors argue that the most effective way to increase turnout is to allow voters to register when they vote, on election day, or beforehand.