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500,000 Floridians Have Already Voted

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Election Day is less than three weeks away, but half a million votes are already in in Florida.

The Miami Herald reports the heaviest voting is taking place in Miami Dade, Tampa Bay and along the I-4 corridor.

About 500,000 Floridians have already cast absentee ballots, and 1.8 million more have requested these ballots be mailed to them.

Heavy interest in the presidential race is believed to be behind the rush to vote so soon.

Republicans are leading Democrats in absentee ballots returned so far 45 percent to 40 percent. That’s despite a push by President Obama’s campaign to have supporters vote absentee this year.

 

Not every Republican ballot is a vote for Republican Mitt Romney, nor is every Democratic ballot cast for President Obama. However, early voters tend to be the most partisan and vote the party line. The big unknown: independent voters, who have cast more than 72,000 ballots and requested 347,000 more as of Wednesday morning.

 

Early in-person voting begins next Saturday and runs through November third. This process tends to dominated by Democrats.

Some elections supervisors are urging voters to vote before election day to avoid long lines.

Requesting an absentee ballot is simple. Registered voters just have to make a request at their local supervisor of elections office.

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