NBC's Chuck Todd: Ohio Democrats Have ‘Perhaps the Best State Party in the Country.’

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Oct 22, 2010

Ohio Dems Show Early Vote, Organizational Strength

COLUMBUS – Media outlets across the country are reporting that Ohio Democrats hold an advantage in early vote, and many reporters have credited the organizational strength of the Ohio Democratic Coordinated Campaign for that edge.

Chuck Todd: Ohio Democrats Have ‘Perhaps the Best State Party in the Country.’ “What you have to remember, though, in Ohio is that the Ohio Democratic Party -- I had somebody tell me this -- is the third largest Democratic organization in the country outs— basically DNC one, the Democratic Congressional Committee two. The apparatus of the Ohio Democratic Party is so big and one of the better state parties in the country, perhaps the best state party in the country, and that had had Republicans nervous about knocking Strickland off the whole time. That apparatus is in gear. You’re seeing it come through under some early vote totals.” [MSNBC, 10/22/10]

Politico: Democrats Have About a 10 Point Statewide Edge in Early Vote. “Ballots have been requested by 839,390 Ohio voters thus far, with Democrats comprising about 40 percent to the GOP's 30 percent, and the rest unaffiliated voters. The Democrats' coordinated campaign director, Lauren Groh-Wargo, said the party's months of organizing were beginning to pay off. ‘This is not accidental,’ she said. ‘We have made a concerted effort to target infrequent Democratic voters. We are expanding the electorate in this midterm election, and Republicans are not.’” [Politico, 10/22/10]

Election Analyst: Ohio Dems’ Advantage in Early Vote Looks Like 2008. “‘I’m just blown away by these numbers, given everything we’ve been told about the enthusiasm gap,’ George Mason University political science Professor Michael McDonald said in an interview with ABC News. McDonald, an expert in voting statistics and trends, said he’s also seen some positive signs for Democrats in certain Ohio counties. ‘I don’t know what the heck to make out of what we’re seeing out of Iowa and Ohio,’ he said. ‘I feel like I’m in 2008, it’s like déjà vu all over again.’” [ABC News, 10/15/10]

Wall Street Journal: Ohio Dems Claim Early Vote Edge; Republicans Concede They’re Behind. “Doug Kelly, executive director of the Ohio Democratic Party, said volunteers have been pressing indifferent Democrats to request absentee ballots for weeks. They then track who has returned them, and lobby those who haven’t. Unlike some states, Ohio doesn’t publicly release total vote counts, although heavily Democratic Cuyahoga County has. So far, Mr. Kelly said, Democrats have a slight lead, an assessment shared by John McClelland of the Ohio Republican Party, who said Democrats began early voting programs first.” [Wall Street Journal, 10/21/10]

Hotline: Ohio Dems’ Early Vote Edge ‘An Indication That the Party’s Turnout Efforts Are Working.’ “But not all states are seeing a big surge of Republican voters. In Ohio, Democrats have requested and returned absentee ballots at a higher rate than have Republicans, and more Democrats have voted early in person. According to the state Democratic Party’s totals, five times more infrequent-voting Democrats have turned out than Republicans, an indication that the party’s turnout efforts are working.” [Hotline, 10/21/10]

Washington Post: Ohio Has ‘Best-Organized’ Operation in the Country. Ohio has “the best-organized state Democratic Party in the nation. Its headquarters in a renovated former Salvation Army building here hums with activity, looking more like a national party command center than the typical ramshackle state party office. While Strickland trails Republican John Kasich in public polls, he narrowly leads in his own surveys and hopes to overcome the enthusiasm gap with organizational energy. President Obama sees Ohio as a firewall in his 2012 reelection effort, and having a friendly governor would be a major asset. Obama’s visit here on Sunday, which drew a crowd of 35,000, was an exercise in firewall-building.” [Washington Post, 10/21/10]

New York Times: Ohio Dems Better Organized than Republicans for Early Vote. “[Ohio] Democrats, who have been quicker to take advantage of [Early Vote] in the last two election cycles, say that a voting window of 30 days could allow them to win votes from people who might not otherwise cast a ballot...Republicans concede being slower to adjust to the changes...” [New York Times, 9/27/10]

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