Voters line up to cast ballots outside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, on October 24. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the state of New York is allowing early voting for the first time.
Jeenah Moon/Reuters

In pictures: A year defined by lines

Updated 2350 GMT (0750 HKT) October 26, 2020

Voters line up to cast ballots outside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, on October 24. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the state of New York is allowing early voting for the first time.
Jeenah Moon/Reuters

Across the United States, many determined voters have been enduring long lines to cast their early ballots this election season.

It's just the latest example of a year that has been, in part, defined by lines.

In March, we started seeing Americans lining up to buy groceries and medicine in the midst of a new pandemic. Others queued up for unemployment benefits or assistance from food banks.

The lines look even longer than usual because people are, for the most part, socially distancing.

And the lines aren't just person to person. With drive-thru testing sites and pickups, we've seen vehicles lined up for miles in some areas.

Cars line up in a mall parking lot for a drive-thru food pantry in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in April.
Neil Blake/AP
High school graduates turn their tassels during a drive-thru graduation ceremony at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway in May.
John Locher/AP
People wait to receive free produce, dry goods and meat at a food bank in New York City in July.
Scott Heins/Getty Images
Hundreds of people line up outside the Kentucky Career Center in Frankfort two hours before it opened in June. They were there to find assistance for their unemployment claims.
Bryan Woolston/Reuters
People wait in a line to vote early in New York City on October 24.
Stephanie Keith/Getty Images
Cars line up to receive unemployment applications that were being given out in Hialeah, Florida, in April.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
People wait to vote in Chattanooga, Tennessee, on October 14. Early voting had just opened in Tennessee, and some people said they waited 90 minutes to just reach the entrance.
C.B. Schmelter/Chattanooga Times Free Press/AP
Students line up in a hallway during a lunch break at a Los Angeles Boys & Girls Club in August. The facility was open for children whose parents had to leave home for work.
Jae C. Hong/AP
People wait in their cars for the San Antonio Food Bank to begin distributing food in April.
William Luther/San Antonio Express-News/ZumaPress
Customers stand outside an H.E.B. grocery store in Austin, Texas, in April.
Bronte Wittpenn/Bloomberg/Getty Images
Vehicles line up in August as food is distributed by the Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida.
Paul Hennessy/NurPhoto/Getty Images
Long lines awaited residents as early in-person voting started Monday in Cape Coral. The Cape Coral library is one of several locations where registered voters can participate. It will be open from 10am- 5pm.Fnp 101920 Rr Early Voting Cc003
Ricardo Rolon/The News-Press USA/USA Today Network
Voters line up in Bloomington, Indiana, on October 6.
Jeremy Hogan/SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images
Drivers line up for a pop-up grocery event in Mankato, Minnesota, in June.
Ben Brewer/Bloomberg/Getty Images
People wait in line to buy food at a Los Angeles grocery store in March.
Apu Gomes/AFP/Getty Images
People wait behind plastic barriers to vote in Toledo, Ohio, on October 6.
Seth Herald/AFP/Getty Images
People line up for food distribution at a New York City church in May. Thousands of people waited for hours to get food.
Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images
Vehicles line up for Covid-19 testing at Los Angeles' Dodger Stadium in June.
Sarah Reingewirtz/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News/Getty Images
People stand in line to cast their ballots in Detroit on October 24.
Emily Elconin/Reuters