The latest early voting numbers from the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office show Republicans continuing to gain ground. Statewide, the Democratic lead in absentee ballot requests has fallen to about 32,000. For the first time this year, Republicans have a small lead in absentee ballots requested in the fourth Congressional district (where the party has a voter registration edge of more than 55,000).
The latest tables showing absentee ballots requested and returned in all four Congressional districts are after the jump. Click here for previous tables, which make it easier to spot trends in the numbers.
The big unanswered question remains: which party is mobilizing more voters who otherwise would not participate in a midterm election? A Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee official told Philip Rucker of the Washington Post that among the Iowans who had requested absentee ballots by October 2, about 30 percent of Democrats and 47 percent of no-party voters did not vote in 2010. The Secretary of State’s Office declined to independently verify that claim. If accurate, it works out to about roughly 30,000 of the Democrats and 20,000 of the no-party voters who had requested ballots by October 2.
Absentee ballots requested by Iowa voters as of October 6, 2014
| Congressional district | Democrats | Republicans | no-party voters | Libertarian | Iowa Green | total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IA-01 | 29,849 | 17,619 | 13,886 | 61 | 35 | 61,450 |
| IA-02 | 32,395 | 19,114 | 13,820 | 49 | 48 | 65,426 |
| IA-03 | 29,392 | 21,311 | 10,578 | 60 | 36 | 61,377 |
| IA-04 | 20,373 | 21,911 | 9,159 | 29 | 18 | 51,490 |
| statewide | 112,009 | 79,955 | 47,443 | 199 | 137 | 239,743 |
Absentee ballots received by Iowa county auditors as of October 6, 2014
| Congressional district | Democrats | Republicans | no-party voters | Libertarian | Iowa Green | total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IA-01 | 11,715 | 6,826 | 4,046 | 25 | 9 | 22,621 |
| IA-02 | 11,997 | 7,519 | 3,761 | 15 | 14 | 23,306 |
| IA-03 | 10,011 | 6,880 | 2,614 | 17 | 9 | 19,531 |
| IA-04 | 8,162 | 7,859 | 2,837 | 7 | 6 | 18,871 |
| statewide | 41,885 | 29,084 | 13,258 | 64 | 38 | 84,329 |
3 Comments
Slow and steady, wins the race.
With the First Lady coming to Drake on Friday and the debate on Saturday, Bruce will have a few good news cycles. As the voters become more aware of Mrs. Ernst and her crazy the moderate should win. Bruce needs to WIN the next debate because then we can run-out the clock, early voting wise.
Minimum Wage is a winner. EPA is a winner. Pell Grants is a winner, Press ON!
Appel’s chances looks better as each day passes and that is hopeful.
okoboji-mike Tue 7 Oct 9:48 AM
From Salon, somebody did thier oppo research.
Tuesday, Oct 7, 2014 05:59 AM CDT
EXCLUSIVE: Iowa Senate shocker – contracts awarded to Joni Ernst’s father raise conflict of interest questions
Father of GOP nominee won $200,000 in contracts when Joni Ernst was in office, despite conflict of interest rules.
This will not play well, good Iowans! Boy am I glad to read this, I was getting discouraged.
okoboji-mike Tue 7 Oct 10:17 AM
she will easily explain this away
She didn’t vote on the contracts, she didn’t know it was against the rules for her dad’s company to contract with the county, and his company submitted the lowest bids. All said with a smile. Media will not press her beyond that well-coached explanation.
By the way, here’s the link to the story at Salon.
desmoinesdem Tue 7 Oct 2:44 PM