A month after Republicans edged ahead of Democrats in countywide voter registration, new figures show the GOP trailing here a month before the presidential election.
In Santee, Republicans outnumber Democrats 13,311 to 8,123—with 29,975 eligible to vote.
In early September, voters affiliated with the Republican Party outnumbered Democrats by a slim 100 countywide—510,792 to 510,692.
On Tuesday, Democratic officials boasted a swing back to the Blue column.
As of Sept. 30, figures issued by the county Registrar of Voters Office showed 518,463 Democrats eligible to vote in San Diego County against 514,582 Republicans—out of 1.47 million voters total.
In a statement, county Democratic Party Chairman Jess Durfee called the shift “a key sign of momentum for Democratic candidates just before many ballots hit mailboxes next week.”
County Republican Party Chairman Tony Krvaric said: “We expect county party registration numbers to continue to be close. Clearly there is a paid effort afoot on the Democratic side.”
Responding to a Patch query, Krvaric said via email: “At the end of the day, the key will be who shows up to the polls and we are confident Republicans will outperform registration by a healthy margin.”
Durfee noted that last month Secretary of State Debra Bowen launched registertovote.ca.gov where Californians can sign up to vote online for the first time, and said more than 100,000 people registered on the site in its first week.
“While some states are making it harder to register and participate in this election, in California it’s easier than ever for eligible voters to make their voices heard,” Durfee said. “In San Diego, we’re already seeing our countywide majority of voters grow, and we plan to turn that into a countywide majority of votes for Democrats on Nov. 6.”
Meanwhile, the La Mesa-Foothills Democratic Club announced a presidential debate viewing party Wednesday night at the La Mesa Community Center, 4975 Memorial Dr.
Social hour with potluck buffet is at 5:30 p.m. followed by the Romney-Obama debate shown on a large screen from 6 to 7:30 p.m. An analysis by county chair Durfee will follow, the club said.
“After Mr. Durfee’s analysis, the club will have brief introductions of local Democratic candidates [or their representatives] and a discussion of some of the issues that will appear on the November ballot,” the club said.
Local Republicans also plan a debate watch party, meeting at Randy Jones All American Sports Grill at 7510 Hazard Center Dr., No. 215, in Mission Valley.
“Local enthusiasm for Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan is through the roof,” Krvaric said in a statement, “and we will wage an aggressive local campaign for our entire ticket over the next several weeks.
“While Democrats defend the status quo, dominated by big unions and big business, Republicans are committed to standing up for taxpayers and small business. We invite all voters to join with us for reform.”
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