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Highlands Today

Record Number Of Voters Cast Early Ballots

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 4, 2008

SEBRING - There should be no excuse for not voting in the 2008 presidential election, said Norma Stokes, assistant supervisor at the Highlands County Elections Office.
Prospective voters had about a month to file an absentee ballot, 12 days to vote early and extended hours on some of those days.

Stokes expected there will be few lines at the polls today.

More than 40 percent, a record number of registered Highlands County voters, took advantage of early voting in Highlands.

Democrats outvoted Republicans, 9,486 to 8,520. Early voters from other parties numbered 2,800.
Republicans hold an overall advantage in the county with 28,671 registered voters versus 26,383 registered Democrats. Voters from other parties total 11,036. There are 66,092 registered voters in the county.

Prior to the voting, Supervisor of Elections Joe Campbell predicted a 75 percent turnout of registered voters. He hadn't changed his mind Tuesday.

The 2000 presidential election drew 36,158 of 52,941 voters, or 68.3 percent of those registered. For the 2004 election, 41,871 chose to vote from a pool of 60,176 registered county voters, for a 70 percent turnout.

There are 5,916 more registered voters in the county for the Obama/McCain matchup than four years ago.

Stokes is excited by the turnout.

"It makes you wish that every election would turn out so well," she said.

BILL RETTEW JR.

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