In Iowa McCain opens state office - Obama has 15 offices in Iowa opened and staffed

[grantcart]

McCain has opened a couple more state offices and that number now numbers about 14 (California just opened its first office last week)

Obama is taking Iowa very seriously and has already opened 15 offices in the state:

Obama leaps to early Iowa start; McCain slowly digs in

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080714/NEWS09/807140319

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is off to a more aggressive campaign in Iowa than John McCain, despite the Republican having clinched the nomination three months earlier than his rival.

Obama has 15 campaign offices open and staffed in Iowa, while McCain is still plotting where to locate about half as many.

Though Obama campaign officials declined to disclose their hiring plans, they said its safe to say their 2-to-1 edge in local headquarters is a sign Obama's staff will outnumber McCain's team, which could reach 20 by this fall.


McCain's recent hiring of a state director and opening of a Des Moines-area headquarters last week soothed county GOP leaders who had worried that McCain waited too long.

But Obama's organizational advantage - in part the product of his winning caucus campaign - and the Democrats' favorable voter registration trend has some national observers taking Iowa off the list of toss-up states.

"It's in the realm of possibility that McCain could pull an upset in Iowa, but it's unlikely," said Larry Sabato, director of University of Virginia's Center for Politics. "Obama has had strength in Iowa from the beginning, which we saw on January 3. And McCain, Iowa's just not his state."

Iowa is among 18 states listed as top targets by both campaigns in the effort to cross the 270 electoral-vote threshold required to win.

In 2004 Bush took Iowa by 10,000 votes.

[grillo7]

1. This is really good news...

As we saw in the primaries, an early start is crucial to success. I was hoping we'd have an advantage on the ground but 15:1? That's great! Any data on the other swing and vulnerable state offices?

[grantcart]

4. welcome to DU. Its easy to count McCain's offices - Obama probably over 100

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x6460157

[Hope And Change]

2. Kick!

[NatBurner]

3. john just seems so slow on the uptake

you would think he'd have some top-notch handlers, but they suck too

not that i'm complaining

[Fire_brand]

5. o noes, but I havent seen teh obama teevee adz

[VADem11]

6. Obama is up by 10 in Iowa

I think we can take it off the list of toss-ups.

[grantcart]

9. well lets keep it on so McCain wastes some ads there

[Pavlovs DiOgie]

7. What in the world was McCain doing for the 3 months

he had the nomination while Obama and Clinton were battling it out - was it nap time?

[Frustratedlady]

8. Our office has been open for over a month...probably two.

I signed on to volunteer three weeks ago and there were quite a number who had already signed in.