Today is the last day for early voting in person in Ohio and Iowa. Vote-by-mail ballots are still coming in, but deadlines are ending. As we mark the end of 2012 early voting and get ready for the final day of voting tomorrow—Election Day—let’s take one last look at where things stand with early vote numbers.

Our historic early vote turnout has put President Obama in a strong position to win tomorrow and continue to move the country forward for another four years.

How do we know? First, according to the latest polls, we are winning among early voters in Colorado, Florida, Iowa, North Carolina, Nevada, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Nearly all of these leads are in double digits. This matches the enthusiasm we’re seeing at polling places and out in the field.

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In many ways, President Obama’s road to the White House began in Iowa with his historic victory in its first-in-the-nation caucus. Tomorrow, the President and the First Lady will hold their last rally before Election Day in the Hawkeye State.

But the President’s connection to Iowa is much more than just sentimental—its six electoral votes are a key piece of the puzzle and will help re-elect him to a second term. That’s why we never stopped organizing in Iowa after that January 2008 caucus win. And since early vote started on September 27th, supporters have been voting in each of Iowa’s 99 counties.

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Today would be the last day of early voting in Ohio, if not for our supporters' efforts to expand voting access for working people across the state. But thanks to them, Ohio voters still have four more days to vote early.

We’re better off as a country when more citizens can make their voices heard at the polls. That’s why our campaign worked tirelessly to expand the electorate in 2012—registering nearly twice as many voters this year as we did in 2008—and it’s why we’ve made sure every American can exercise their right without interference or intimidation. We’ve built a voter protection program that’s second to none, focused on voter education, expanding voter access, and promoting early vote.

We fought back when Republicans tried to limit the days and times you can vote. OFA-Ohio ran a campaign in 2011 to protect early voting when the Republican governor and state legislature tried to shorten it. The case went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, and now every Ohioan can vote this weekend and Monday before the election. We were able to take up and win this long fight to ensure open voting for all Ohioans—including our military personnel, veterans, and overseas voters—because our grassroots organization never left Ohio after the 2008 election. We’ve been organizing in Ohio communities for years, and today we’re seeing the results as more voters make their voices heard.

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We started this campaign with the fundamental belief that the electorate isn’t something that’s set in stone, and that we could change and expand it. Americans decided a long time ago that our democracy works better when more people participate in it. So our campaign has made a priority of bringing more citizens into the process and helping millions of new voters exercise their rights.

The variety of voting habits is nearly as diverse as the political spectrum. Some voters come out every time, no matter what. Others voted in 2008, but not in 2010. Then there are new voters who weren’t registered till this year and are excited to cast their first ballots for President Obama’s final campaign. Of course, there are also citizens who’ve been registered forever but never make it out to the polls.

Our campaign strategy in 2012 was based, in part, on registering new voters and turning them out for early vote and on Election Day—and that’s happening. To borrow a phrase from a nervous Republican consultant talking in Florida this week about our turnout success, we’re cleaning the other guys’ clock. Here’s what we’re seeing in the states:

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By this time next week, President Obama will have been re-elected to a second term. Here are two big reasons why: One, women make up more than half of the electorate in America; and two, most women voters support President Obama

Women’s strong support for President Obama is going to decide this election.

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Our thoughts and prayers are with those affected by Hurricane Sandy. If you can, please consider donating to the Red Cross relief efforts.

As we continue our daily updates on the state of the ground game, we want to turn attention to the African American vote. The African American community is solidly and overwhelmingly behind President Obama, because they know he is fighting for all of us, not just some of us.

Our campaign has been committed to organizing in the African American community for years, with our Barbershop and Beauty Salon program, congregation captains, and HBCU summits (Historically Black Colleges and Universities). Over the last four years we have built deep roots and recruited and trained members of the community to own and run the campaign in their neighborhoods. As a result, African American volunteers are a strong foundation of our team-based grassroots program.

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Welcome to the last week of the race.

We are in the close contest we’ve prepared carefully for over the past two years. It’s been a remarkably consistent, close, and competitive race, and when we look at the hard numbers that are already coming in President Obama is winning and has the momentum.

Early voting is giving us a solid lead in the battleground states that will decide this election. Two polls in the last two days have us up in Virginia. Three more in Ohio, New Hampshire, and Florida show movement in our direction. And in states like Iowa and Nevada, we’re racking up early vote margins so large that, if it continues at this rate, Mitt Romney will have to beat us by a 20 percent margin on Election Day to win.

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As in-person early voting starts in Florida today, we’re just 10 days away from keeping a key battleground and re-electing President Obama. And while the outcome will be the same as in 2008, much has changed in Florida’s electorate over the last four years.

First, Democrats have dramatically cut into Republicans’ advantage in vote-by-mail—an area where the Republicans have historically been stronger. At this point four years ago, the Republican advantage exceeded 257,000 voters. But this year, it’s just over 33,500—an 87 percent drop. In a state President Obama won by nearly 240,000 votes, that's a 223,500-vote swing even the dizziest Republican can't spin away. Democrats have also cut the GOP’s 2008 advantage in absentee ballots returned so far by 55 percent.

Why does all this matter? Remember: In spite of the vote-by-mail disadvantages we faced in 2008, President Obama still won Florida. In 2012, we’re closing those gaps.

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Whenever anyone tries to predict this year’s election by looking at what happened two or four or eight years ago, remind them that we always look forward, not backward.

The electorate has changed, and our registration and turnout operation has changed with it. In 1984 and 1988, just 3% of voters were Latino. That tripled over the next 20 years, growing to 9% of the electorate in 2008. Today, the Latino community is playing a key role in our diverse, grassroots movement to re-elect President Obama. Voter registration among Latinos in North Carolina is up 55% since 2008, up 20% in Colorado, and up 15% in Nevada. And in all three states, Latinos make up a larger percentage of early voters than they did at this time four years ago.

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