The GOP primary today in Delaware —with the potential for a “tea party” victory in largely Democratic region — has brought an unusual amount of attention to this tiny state in the shadows of Philadelphia, just across the Delaware River.
“This has to be the most attention anybody’s given to Delaware since that Simpsons episode where the family went to Delaware,” somebody posted on Twitter.
CNN and other major news organizations are reporting live across the state of 885,000 residents, where GOP-establishment candidate Rep. Michael Castle faces a come-from-behind challenge from “tea party”-candidate Christine O’Donnell, a conservative activist.
Most reports have a light voter turnout through the lunch hours.
There are 182,796 voters eligible to cast ballots in today’s closed GOP primary, which means only registered Republicans can vote. However, voter turnout is expected to be 8 to 14 percent, which means about 30,000 voters could decide the race, according to the Wilmington News Journal.
The state has 146,212 voters who are neither Democrats nor Republicans, meaning 23.5 percent of the
electorate cannot participate in state primaries.
Polls this week showed Ms. O’Donnell with a 3-point lead over Mr. Castle, a former Delaware governor who had a double-digit lead as recently as recently as mid-August. The winner will face Democratic candidate and county executive Chris Coons.
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