This is important in Ohio because the democrats always vote heavily absentee ballot. I can't say for sure but the early voting I think is part of the actual election day voting totals....
Just to give you some perspective here......Republicans tend to come out in-mass on election day to vote and if this was all you counted in 2008 you would have seen a McCain win from Ohio on election day.
In conclusion, the numbers of absentees being way down for Democrats in 2012 is portending a very bad election day for Obozo.
I hope this answers your question. If you want to find out whats going on in Ohio, follow Ravi and LS. They've been doing a lot of the heavy lifting on the numbers in Ohio.
When is the last day to request absentee ballots? Is it right up through election day?