OH-12 SPECIAL: Local Democrats show strong early voting interest
Franklin County is not only a blue area these days, but it also is obviously the home of county Recorder Danny O’Connor.
O’Connor’s fellow Franklin County Democrats were impressively quick out of the starting gate last week in the initial days of early voting for the Aug. 7 special election to succeed Republican Pat Tiberi in the 12th Congressional District, which takes in a chunk of the northeastern portion of the county.
Democrats have requested more than three times as many mail-in absentee ballots as Republicans have, 1,340 compared with 391 through Friday. And the Democrats are crushing the GOP in early in-person voting at the county elections board, 691-54. Unaffiliated voters — who make up the large majority overall — have show little interest in the contest, totaling fewer than 450 ballots requested by mail or cast in person.
It’s very early in the process, of course — and the other counties in the 12th District are much more Republican — but the numbers seem to bolster Democrats’ argument that O’Connor has a shot in his uphill battle to defeat Tiberi’s anointed GOP successor, state Sen. Troy Balderson of Zanesville.
And, with the caution that Democrats typically cast more early, in-person ballots than GOP voters do, registered Democrats outvoted Republicans 314-123 in GOP-dominated Delaware County last week. Absentee-ballot requests were nearly dead even between the two parties’ voters.
http://www.dispatch.com/news/20180714/capitol-insider--local-democrats-show-early-voting-interest
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