Good news: It’s not just Travis County that is setting records for primary early voting. As reported by Eye on Williamson, our neighbors to the north (which actually includes several thousand Austinites) have caught the bug as well.
More good news: Most of the explosive grown in numbers is coming from Democrats.
In the 2004 primary, the first three days produced 2,444 votes; after only two days in 2008, WilCo residents have cast 4,054. (See the charts on the EoW page.) Of those votes four years ago, only 19% were from Democrats. This year, 62% have been Dems.
Of course, the rush to the polls is driven by the fact that the Democratic presidential nomination is still very much in play, while McCain will have to be hit by a meteor to lose the GOP bid &ndash so don’t assume this will translate into Republicans losing their stranglehold on Williamson County politics in November. Still, it’s hard not to be impressed: 458 Dems after three days in 2004 versus 2,501 Dems this year!
This article appears in February 22 • 2008.