Record Number of Montanans Vote Absentee

By Matthew Frank, 10-28-08

A record number of Montana voters—more than 121,000—have already turned in absentee ballots, about 30 percent of the total turnout in 2004.

“In 2006, we had 119,894 absentee ballots voted, the highest number ever. So far in 2008, we’ve had 121,005. That makes this year a new record, and it’s not even Election Day yet,” said Secretary of State Brad Johnson in a statement. “Montanans care about our state and our nation—the numbers prove it.”

A total of 179,149 absentee ballots have been sent out. Click here county-by-county numbers (PDF).

In Montana, anyone can vote absentee, and early voting is counted as such.

While the returned ballots are tallied, the actual votes won’t be until Election Day, so we don’t know who’s winning.

But we can guess, at least, about the presidential race. According to a national Pew Research Center poll released today, Barack Obama leads John McCain by 19 points among those who have already voted and those who plan to vote early but haven’t yet, a group that makes up about 31 percent of the voters surveyed.

While polls have mostly suggested a solid McCain lead in Montana since the summer, recent polls show a tightening race or even an Obama lead.

Nationally, some 12 million voters have already cast ballots. For state-by-state early voting data, click here.

Like this story? Get more! Sign up for our free newsletters.