Early ballots surge in Ohio's most populous county, with Dems outpacing Republicans: report

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Biden makes his presidential pitch to voters in Ohio

Polling averages show former VP with narrow lead in Buckeye State; Peter Doocy reports from Hebron, Kentucky.

Early ballot tallies are surging in Ohio’s most populous county with the 2020 presidential election just weeks away, according to a report Tuesday.

More than 20,000 residents of Franklin County have cast in-person ballots since early voting began on Oct. 6, the Columbus Dispatch reported. The vote tally has already more than doubled compared to 2016, when 9,900 county residents cast early ballots.

OHIO'S FRANKLIN COUNTY SEES NEARLY 50K RESIDENTS GET WRONG ABSENTEE BALLOTS

Registered Democrats have far outpaced local Republicans in early voting, accounting for 55% of the early in-person ballots. Unaffiliated voters comprised 39% of the early vote, while registered Republicans accounted for just 6%.

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The state of Ohio controls 18 electoral votes and is considered a key battleground for the upcoming election. Recent polls have showed Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden with a slight edge over President Trump in the state.

State election officials have noted a marked increase in turnout for early voters and mail-in ballot requests during the coronavirus pandemic. More than two million Ohioans requested early ballots ahead of the 2020 election.

Earlier this week, the Franklin County board of elections sent out replacement mail-in ballots after nearly 50,000 residents received incorrect ballots due to what officials described as a scanner malfunction.

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The Biden campaign has stepped up television ads in battleground states, including Ohio, in recent days with the former vice president also holding events in Toledo and Cleveland on Monday.

Meanwhile, the Trump campaign recently canceled a planned TV ad buy in Ohio in a move his representatives touted as a sign of confidence in their standing in the state. Trump won Ohio by eight percentage points in 2016.