Election officials in Georgia, North Carolina and Florida are working quickly to ensure voters can still securely cast early ballots, despite the devastating storm impacts of Hurricane Helene that have in some cases left them without power,

Helene is the first catastrophic event in U.S. history to affect two critical swing states within six weeks of a presidential election. Both Georgia and North Carolina have 16 electoral votes — enough to decide the outcome of the race.

After hitting Florida’s Gulf Coast, Helene tore through the Southeast, unleashing historic rain and flooding in parts of Georgia and the Carolinas and leaving dozens of people dead and millions without power.