Methodology

The monthly registration data for Florida, Virginia, and Maryland is available at each state’s election website. Colorado’s new registration data was provided directly to The Pew Center on the States by the Colorado election office.

For each state, the new registration data was divided according to the method by which the new registration was received. The number and types of subcategories differed between states. In order to simplify the data, we organized the data from each state into four larger categories: agency registrations, mail, in-person, and third party registrations, online registrations, and other. Colorado is the only state in this study with online registrations and Maryland is the only state where the other category was used.

Agency registrations refers to new registrations submitted through non-election related government agencies, including motor vehicle offices, public assistance agencies, military recruiting offices, and public libraries. Mail, in-person, or third party registrations include new registrations submitted, usually by paper, through methods driven by the election cycle, such as individuals registering with their election office, or through a third-party registration group. Online registration refers to new registrations submitted online.

For more information about how state subcategories were grouped into the four larger categories, please see the table below:

Report Assets