After a frenzied last day of campaigning, the polls are open in Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia:
Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama offered himself as “something new” at a pair of spirited, arena-size rallies in Maryland yesterday, while his primary rival, Hillary Rodham Clinton, portrayed herself as a “battle-scarred” fighter for the middle class at more intimate events held across the region on the eve of today’s primaries.
As the closing arguments were made to voters in Virginia, Maryland and the District, election officials were predicting a heavy turnout for the first-ever “Potomac Primary,” and a great deal was at stake for the two Democratic candidates.
Obama was angling to sweep the three jurisdictions. For Clinton, a stronger-than-expected showing could blunt Obama’s momentum in what has turned into a protracted competition for convention delegates: 171 are in play today, with contests in larger states such as Ohio and Texas looming.
Republicans will be on the ballot in the three jurisdictions as well today, but the contest between Sen. John McCain of Arizona and former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee has been more subdued, given McCain’s seemingly insurmountable lead in delegates after Super Tuesday. Still, today’s contests, particularly in Virginia, could provide a measure of conservative discontent with the presumptive GOP nominee. On the Republican side, 119 delegates are up for grabs.
And, it’s expected that turnout will be high across the region:
Election officials in Virginia, Maryland and the District expect a large, perhaps record-breaking, turnout in today’s primaries as voters think they can influence one of the closest presidential nominating fights in memor
Using absentee balloting and voter inquiries as their guide, officials said interest in the primary is unprecedented. The Democratic race is tight and historic, and many Republican voters say the direction of their party is at stake.
Officials in parts of Virginia have received a record number of absentee ballots, a key barometer of turnout. In Fairfax County, the state’s largest jurisdiction, requests for Democratic absentee ballots have more than tripled over 2004. “Saturday was one of our busiest absentee voting days for any election, not just for any primary,” said Jackie Harris, the Fairfax general registrar.
In Maryland, Democratic leaders predicted that turnout in the party could reach 1 million voters, shattering the record. Four years ago, about 470,000 Democrats voted in the primary. The record is about 596,000 in 1976, when Jerry Brown defeated Jimmy Carter in the state.
“Voter turnout among all voters is going to skyrocket,” said David Paulson, spokesman for the Maryland Democratic Party.
On the Democratic side, that would seem to favor Barack Obama, but we shall see.
Kellie and I voted when the polls opened at 6am. At our polling place here in Western Prince William County, there was a line of about a dozen people waiting at the door when the polls opened. Interestingly enough, though, there were no campaign signs near or on the way to the polling place — unlike the blanket of Corey Stewart and Sharon Pandak signs we saw in November — and the only person handing out literature at that early hour was a Ron Paul guy.
