Enthusiasm in Ohio Evident on Both Sides

New Albany, Ohio -- If there is one thing that I can convey with absolutely certainty to the rest of the United States about Ohio's citizens and their feelings about the upcoming election, it is this: They are very enthusiastic about voting this year.

I have spoken to plenty of Democrats and Republicans, and just about everyone is very excited about the election process and how important of a role Ohio will play once again. I believe, while many people get sick of the constant television advertising from candidates, Ohioans also love that Ohio is one of the very top targets of both the McCain and Obama campaign. It is almost as if there is a sense of pride that comes with the fact that our state will play this key role.

The Obama campaign has been doing a very good job of getting the word out to Democratic voters about early voting in Ohio. Clearly the advantage in early voting has gone to Obama. In Franklin County, Ohio, home of the capital city of Columbus, Democratic early votes outnumber Republicans by a stunning number of two to one. The number of Democrats voting in person in the all important county is as much as 10 or 12 to 1 that of Republicans. Republicans say the McCain campaign is pushing absentee voting very hard, but even that can't make up for such a huge disadvantage in the early voting numbers.

What has the turnout in the past couple of elections looked like in the state of Ohio? In 2000, 62 percent of registered voters cast their vote for president, while in 2004, 71 percent cast their vote. Both the Bush and Kerry teams did a great job of getting out the vote in the state in 2004, knowing that the state could very well be the deciding state, which in the end, it definitely was.

Can the Obama and McCain camps' efforts push the turnout even higher than the 71 percent figure from 2004? It is very possible. A figure of 75 percent or a little greater is very doable in the state. With the early voting numbers outpacing past years by so much, if voters simply show up in equal numbers on November 4, then the turnout will end up being very high.

Another simple anecdotal piece of evidence that people are very involved in this campaign comes from the number of yard signs seen in the lawns of Ohioans this year. I can tell you first-hand that there are certainly more signs this year in these areas than in 2004. In some towns, it seems as if there is duel going on to see which candidate can have the most yard signs.

In just five days, the yard signs and all the anecdotal evidence will go away and only one thing will matter: the final tallies of the vote from the Buckeye state. The voters of Ohio are very ready for this day.