AUSTIN — By the ninth day of early voting Tuesday, 400,765 Dallas County residents had voted by mail and in person — slightly under the 401,022 ballots that were cast through the same day during the 2016 presidential election.

On Monday, the county passed the same-day total from 2016 by nearly 1,500 votes. After Tuesday, Dallas was behind by 257.

By Tuesday, 30 percent of Dallas' 1.3 million registered voters had cast their ballot, according to the Texas secretary of state.

Dallas is the North Texas county closest to matching 2016, but many counties in the state have seen significantly higher turnout than previous midterm elections in 2014 and 2010.

Stephanie Martin, an assistant professor of communication studies at Southern Methodist University, told The Dallas Morning News last week that the 2016 election showed the early vote doesn't necessarily predict overall turnout. Republicans have tended to vote at higher rates than Democrats, so it's difficult to figure out what the enthusiasm this year could mean for either party.

A record number of Texans are registered to vote in November — 15,793,257 — in a state that traditionally has had abysmally low voter turnout. During the 2014 midterm elections, only 4.7 million of the 14 million registered voters went to the polls.

Dallas County residents can find voting locations and view wait times on this map. More early voting information for Dallas County can be found on the county registrar's website.

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 6.

Here's more coverage about voting and the midterm elections from The Dallas Morning News: