Tampabay.com
OCTOBER 19, 2008

Democrats blow out GOP in registrations

Stunning numbers in the final voter registration report out this afternooon. Democrats head into the election with 657,775 more voters in Florida than Republicans. They added more than 200,000 to their advantage just since July.

When George W. Bush won Florida by 381,000 votes four years ago, Democrats had a registration advantage of 368,757. Now, of course, the 657,775 dollar question is how well can the Obama machine turn out all those voters.

Because of how the data was compiled, it's impossible to get a solid estimate for absentee ballots in 2004. Republicans estimate they had a 4% lead in absentee ballots , but come election day that evaporated to a virtual tie because of the Democrats' advantage on early votes. Democrats guestimate the GOP lead in absentee ballots was closer to 20%, and early voting made up for it.

So far, according to Republican estimates 267,000 Republicans have voted by mail, 179,000 Democrats, and 68,000 others.

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For Florida political news today, the Buzz is your can't-miss-it source. Tampa Bay Times writers offer the latest in Florida politics, the Florida Legislature and the Rick Scott administration. Keep in mind: This is a public forum sponsored and maintained by the Tampa Bay Times. When you post comments here, what you say becomes public and could appear in the newspaper. You are not engaging in private communication with candidates or Times staffers.

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