Progress Illinois

Across the country, heavy turnout has forced many voters to endure seemingly interminable lines. Democratic congressional candidate Debbie Halvorson, on the other hand, breezed right through her polling place in far-south suburban Crete. And frankly, that was just fine with her. "My precinct is technically more Republican," she told me from her campaign headquarters in Joliet.  "So there was no line at all! I got right in."

That's not to say turnout was depressed everywhere in the sprawling 11th Congressional District. Only 30,000 people took advantage of early voting there, in part because of the location of various county clerk's offices.  But Halvorson campaign manager Brian Doory said polling places were jammed this morning in Kankakee (a Democratic stronghold), Bourbonnais, and Frankfort.

Halvorson said that concern over the direction of the economy is what she thinks is attracting so many residents to the polls. "People are hurting," she said. "Housing prices are down, wages are down, and expenses are up. It's the same everywhere you go."

In the past four days, Doory estimates that campaign volunteers knocked on 70,000 doors (35,000 on Saturday alone), distributing literature and talking about the issues. Sixty volunteers had already filtered through the headquarters by 10:15 AM. Two drove a giant campaign van through the streets of Joliet reminding people to vote.  A speaker atop the vehicle blared "Happy Days Are Here Again."

In a district that straddles multiple media markets -- meaning television ads aren't as cost-effective -- the Dems are hoping Halvorson's ground operation puts her over the top.