10 days to go!

As the election gets closer and closer, Maryland's "election officials brace for historic turn-out".  The Baltimore Examiner predicts that voter turnout in some precincts could reach 90% and 85% state-wide. In a state that is already seen as bleeding blue, this turnout expectation will only reinforce Obama's lead in Maryland. To combat any confusion on election day, Maryland officials have been working to make sure the voter knows what to do and where to go. They have launched a "Know Where I Vote" project and have focused on voter education.

As I predicted with 50 days to go, Maryland will definitely be a state that Obama can call early in the night on November 4th. The state has historically placed its electoral votes for the Democrat, has more registered Democrats than Republicans, and has a large black population that has yet to be swayed by a Republican candidate. 

Volunteers in Maryland are still excited

Even though Maryland is not a swing state in this presidential election, Obama volunteers in Maryland are still fired up. Volunteers such as the ones in the photo above have been gathered by the Obama campaign to help in traveling to their neighboring states of Virginia and Pennsylvania to spread GOTV efforts and encourage others to vote for Obama. The Baltimore Sun said, "The concept of exporting volunteers and resources to competitive states isn't new. But state political observers say the scale, the impact and the stakes have never been higher than this year".  This statement is not surprising, where the Obama campaign has stepped up the levels of GOTV, advertising and fundraising in this election.  Grassroots campaigning in these swing states is essential, and it is very smart for Obama's campaign to continue to make a presence in states like Maryland. 

Voter Registration--Last day in MD!

October 14th at 9:00 PM is the last day to vote in Maryland. The Baltimore Sun spoke with Linda H. Lamone, the state administrator of elections, who had reported to that she had been very busy getting the people of Maryland registered to vote. While Maryland will still be an Obama state, it is important for Obama's campaign to have these newly eligible voters, such as the ones shown above, actually registered to vote. 

A two-party electoral system

Tonight Independent presidential candidate, Ralph Nader, spoke to a group of about 200 people in Baltimore, Maryland. Nader did as other presidential candidates do when speaking to crowds, discussing the main issues of the time. He spoke of the economic situation, his stance on corporate crimes, health care, minimum wage, and the war in Iraq. However, Nader had a different subject that he spoke about to this crowd.

Being an Independent, Nader has not been included in the normal activities of the candidates that we so closely follow. He told the attendees "that he has not done an interview with any of the major networks since February despite being on the ballot in 45 states." It is amazing to think that in our 24 hour news cycle, Nader has not made any news in that many months. Additionally, Nader told the Baltimore crowd that he disagrees in the debates being organized by a privately owned organization, and proposes that it be run by the government instead. Although he was on the ballot in 45 of the 50 states, he has not been deemed worthy to be in the debates. Nader feels that this has limited his message from being heard and that our current system does not allow third party candidates to have any chance.