The final early voting numbers in Denton County are in. Democrats 1,945. Republicans 17,251. The last day of early voting on Friday February 26th saw a huge surge in voting on both sides with 506 Democrats (more than double the previous highest day total) and 4,186 Republicans (almost double the previous day).
These numbers are down from 2008 for the D side, with 28,670 Democrat having voted early. But it is an increase on the Republican side, as an even 17,000 voted early in 2008. From these numbers, Republican turnout for this coming Tuesday's primary election day could be as large or larger than 2008.
What does this mean for both parties? For the Democrats, it means a slightly better performance than 2006 which only saw a total of 1,791 voting in the entire primary. But it pales in comparison to the total 54,757 who voted in the 2008 primary. The excitement just isn't the same as two years ago. But for a midterm election, the 2010 Democratic numbers in the early vote are encouraging.
For Republicans, this means several things. This means the voters who were spurred to vote in 2008 for the likes of McCain or Ron Paul are still voting. But this also means they are turning out in force to make sure that their choice of Governor is made, as well as the numerous contested judicial spots in the county. It also means that many are simply pissed off with the GOP establishment. The teabaggers are going to make themselves known in this election and the GOP local leaders should watch out. The 28,823 votes in 2008 may be eclipsed on Tuesday. The 2010 early vote total already eclipses the total turnout in 2006 of 15,996.
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