Cast ballots early, Obama urges Floridians

Reminds voters of chaos in 2000

TAMPA - Senator Barack Obama, returning to a state that broke Democrats' hearts eight years ago, launched an aggressive effort in Florida yesterday to get supporters to cast early ballots, part of a nationwide push by his campaign to lock in votes long before Election Day.

Florida, where current polls give Obama a narrow edge over Republican rival John McCain, was a natural place for Obama to make his pitch: Yesterday was the first day Floridians could vote early in the presidential race, and it was here that long lines and Election Day chaos in 2000 marred the balloting, which many Democrats believe cost Al Gore the White House.

"Don't wait until Nov. 4," Obama implored a crowd of 8,000 at George Steinbrenner Field, the spring training home of the New York Yankees. "Your car might break down. You might have an emergency . . . the alarm might not go off and you don't get to work on time."

He added, "We're going to make sure your vote is counted."

Obama's prod to vote early is precautionary in another way: Wanting to protect his lead in Florida and in many battleground states, he is trying to bank as many votes as he can, to limit the potential for an 11th-hour development that might shift voters to McCain.

"In the final days of campaigns, the say-anything, do-anything politics too often takes over," Obama said yesterday. "We've seen it before and we're seeing it again - ugly phone calls, misleading mail, misleading TV ads, careless outrageous comments, all aimed at keeping us from working together, all aimed at stopping change."

Obama, whose campaign has also run misleading TV spots attacking McCain, referenced GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin's comments to reporters Sunday suggesting that she didn't agree with the McCain campaign's decision to use automated phone calls to attack Obama, because they irritate voters.

"It's getting so bad that even Senator McCain's running mate denounced his tactics last night," Obama said. "You know, you really have to work hard to violate Governor Palin's standards on negative campaigning."

Florida and six other states, including the crucial battleground of Colorado and the big prize of Texas, began early balloting yesterday. With early voting becoming more popular, some analysts believe that as many as one-third of all voters this year could cast their ballots before Nov. 4.

Obama's appearance in Tampa kicked off a two-day swing through Florida specifically to push early voting. His campaign is also employing top surrogates with wide appeal here, including former rivals New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson and Senator Hillary Clinton, to get people to the polls right away.

"You don't have to wait any longer," Clinton told voters at a joint rally with Obama yesterday evening in Orlando that drew an estimated 50,000 people. "You can vote today, tomorrow, the next day, and begin our march to take our country back. Now is the time to close the deal for Barack Obama and close the book on eight years of failed Republican leadership."

Some voters did not wait.

Fifteen minutes after the early voting station opened yesterday morning at a branch library in West Tampa, Jim Jackson's cellphone rang as he neared the head of a line of about 40 voters.

"It's Hillary Clinton saying I should vote early," he said, laughing as he passed around his phone to companions, who listened to the automated call generated by Obama's campaign.

Jackson, a retired businessman, needed no persuasion. He was decked out in Obama gear - baseball cap and T-shirt - and was one of many African-Americans in the line who said they were voting for the Illinois senator.

Several said it was the first time they have voted early since Florida initiated the practice in 2004. Early voting in Florida ends Nov. 2.

The Obama campaign has poured resources into the get-out-the-vote-early effort, canvassing areas around the limited number of early polling stations, using vans on college campuses to ferry students to voting sites, and airing ads on radio.

Scott Helman can be reached in shelman@globe.com.