Political Cortex: Brain Food for the Body Politic

After four days straight of canvassing, I hung up my tired feet at 5PM today, halfway through my last packet.  I'd feel a bit bad about that, but truthfully, for the last hour I didn't talk to anyone who had not already voted.  Turnout in Missouri has been astounding, and some news organizations are now predicting that we'll top 70% turnout by the time the polls close at 7PM.  

That fits well with what I saw this morning.  I spent the first three hours of the day waving a sign for a local candidate at a nearby polling place.  At the end of that time, turnout was running about 10% above what that same polling station showed during the 2004 election.  That's right, a midterm election is pulling in more voters than a presidential race.

All I can say at this point is that Democrats are hopeful, but it's going to be close.  Yes, turnout has been very high in some Democratic counties, but it's also been high in Republican counties.  Considering the poor polling conditions in some of the urban precints, long lines might discourage voters.  The sheer size of the turnout could generate a bottleneck.

Still, as of right now, things are looking marginally Democratic.  Keep holding your breath.

Exit poll data: the first available exit poll data has McCaskill up 50-48.  Too darn close, but I'll take it.  After all, it's bigger than the margin of the last several races in Missouri.