People line up to cast a vote at an early polling station in Brunswick, Melbourne.

Early voting began on April 22, and there was a massive turnout from people not wanting to wait until May 3.

The Australian Electoral Commission said around 542,000 ballots were cast on the first day of voting – an increase from 314,000 at the last election.

“While the number of people who voted yesterday is higher than day 1 in 2022, pre-polling started later this election,” the AEC said.

“The figures could reflect a short first week [due to the Easter long weekend and Anzac Day public holiday] and may flatten out.

“It’s reasonable to expect around half of all voters will have voted before election day.”