Ballots must be ready that day for voters who meet the guidelines and choose to vote absentee instead of waiting until Nov. 2.

Absentee voters could account for 10 percent of all ballots cast in Southwest Ohio this fall, according to estimates from area election boards.

Hamilton County, for instance, almost hit that number in 2000, with its 36,301 absentee voters accounting for 9 percent of all ballots cast. Statewide, 7 percent of Ohioans voted absentee.

This year, the number of absentees could leap to 50,000 in Hamilton County, estimated John Williams, director of the county board of elections.

Elections officials in surrounding counties are seeing similar trends.

The number of absentee ballots cast in Butler County this year could more than double the 10,290 tallied in the last presidential election, according to Butler Elections Director Robert Mosketti. Warren County is expecting 8,000 absentee votes and Clermont 7,000.

Both parties are seeking out absentee voters this year. President Bush - or at least a recording of him - has been calling area residents to remind them to vote absentee.

Election officials primarily see the large number of absentees requested as a sign of interest in the race between Bush and Sen. John Kerry.

I think there's a tremendous interest in the presidential race," Mosketti said. "Voter apathy has a problem has been a problem in the last eight years. I believe (interest) has been stimulated this year."

Some of the increase can be attributed to the thousands of U.S. troops serving in Iraq and elsewhere overseas.

Dan Bare, director of Clermont County's board of elections, theorizes that the war is having a less obvious impact.

"I think a lot of people are connecting voting with being patriotic," Bare said.

The election has already started in Northern Kentucky, where absentee ballots have started going out to more than 1,000 voters.

Election officials there, too, say they are seeing more requests than in past elections, although Kentucky doesn't require the number of absentee votes to be tracked, so Boone and Campbell counties did not have firm numbers.

Kenton County Clerk Bill Aylor said he expects a jump of about a third, from 2,957 absentee votes in 2000 to around 4,000 this year.

Kentucky voters are more limited than Ohio voters in qualifying for paper absentee ballots, but Kentuckians have another option: voting in advance on an electronic voting machine in their county clerk's office.

"It seems like in every election more people are voting absentee," Aylor said.

Early decisions

Voting absentee means voting early, and that poses a challenge for both voters and the candidates who are courting them.

"We have to vote before we have really thought about it too much," said Gladys McPherson, a 95-year-old resident of the Norwood Retirement Community.

Poll workers travel to nursing homes and hospitals to help those who need a hand with their absentee ballot. More than 60 nursing homes want help, Williams said.

The residents of McPherson's nursing home - who will require six workers, three from each major party - were originally scheduled to vote Wednesday.

Sherry Otten, activities director at the Norwood Retirement Community, tried in vain to find information about the candidates from the League of Women Voters and other nonpartisan sources. It's too early, she was told.

"Our residents want to know a little more about people before they vote," Otten said.

Election officials have moved the home's voting date back to mid-October.

Before the deluge

That's just about when the deluge of TV commercials will hit, according to Greg Hartmann, chairman of the Bush-Cheney campaign in Hamilton County and candidate for clerk of courts.

"People really pay the most attention at the end," he said.

Those who vote early must be reached in less expensive ways than television, Hartmann said, such as with yard signs and by politicking at church festivals.

The parties also rely on direct mail, as they can buy lists of voters who have requested absentee ballots. Republicans, for instance, send a pink sample ballot listing their endorsed candidates from Bush down to county engineer.

Sending sample ballots

The Ohio Democratic Party is mailing absentee ballot applications along with a sample Democratic ballot to remind likely supporters to do their civic duty, according to Hamilton County party Chairman Tim Burke. A second sample ballot will go out to those who apply for absentee ballots.

"You do want to target people who you believe by how they vote in the primaries will support your candidates," he said. "You do everything you can to encourage them to vote."

Learning about candidates and issues is not usually a big problem for those who've already gone to the trouble of requesting a ballot in advance, Bare said.

"These people take their responsibility to vote very seriously," he said.

Voting absentee

In Ohio, you may vote absentee if:

• You will be absent from your county on Election Day.

• You are 62 years old or older.

• You or a family member will be in the hospital.

• You have a physical disability that prevents you from getting to the polls.

• You are an election employee.

• You have religious reasons for not being able to vote on Election Day.

• You will be in jail.

• You are on active military duty.

An absentee ballot may be requested by visiting or writing to your county board of elections.

You must give the following information: Your name and voting residence, the election for which you are requesting a ballot,

your reason for being absent from the polls on Election Day and your signature.

For more information, call your county Board of Elections:

Butler County: (513) 887-3700

Clermont County: (513) 732-7275

Hamilton County: (513) 632-7000

Warren County: (513) 925-1358

In Kentucky, you may request an absentee ballot if:

• You are elderly.

• You have a disability, illness or medical emergency.

• You are a member of the armed forces or the dependent of a member.

• You temporarily reside overseas but are still eligible to vote in Kentucky.

• You are a student attending school outside your home county.

• You temporarily live outside the state but are still eligible to vote in Kentucky

• You are in jail and have been charged but not convicted of a felony.

• You work outside the county.

The deadline for applying for a paper absentee ballot is seven days before an election. However, you may apply for a medical emergency absentee ballot up to the day of the election.

An absentee ballot application may be requested from your county clerk's office in person, by mail, by phone or by fax.

If you do not qualify for a paper absentee ballot, you may vote an absentee ballot on a voting machine in the county clerk's office before the election. In-office voting has started in Campbell County and it starts Oct. 4 in Kenton County and Oct. 6 in Boone County.

You must meet one of the following conditions:

• You will be out of the county on Election Day.

• You are a pregnant woman in your third trimester.

• You are a member or an employee of the county board of elections.

• You or your spouse have surgery scheduled that will require hospitalization on Election Day.

For more information, call your county clerk's office:

Boone County, (859) 334-2130; Campbell County, (859) 292-3850; or Kenton County, (859) 392-1652.

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E-mail candrews@enquirer.com