COLUMBUS, Ohio - Is the blue wave nearing Ohio? It's too soon to tell, but early voting numbers might provide some clues.

Ohio Democratic voters are requesting more absentee ballots than their Republican counterparts for the primary election. An informal survey of Ohio's 88 county boards of elections shows that so far, 66,092 Democratic ballots and 42,365 Republican ballots were requested. That's a difference of almost 25,000 ballots.

"The difference between Democrats and Republicans is interesting," says Mike Dawson, an expert in Ohio election statistics. "It could be one of two things. It could be that the Democrats are more motivated to vote than Republicans are this year. Or, it could mean that there is more interest in the Democratic primary for governor than there is for the Republican primary for governor."

Dawson, however, does point out that Republicans tend to vote in larger numbers than Democrats do in the primaries. In 2014, there were 119,000 more Republican voters than Democratic voters. In 2010, that difference was 116,000, according to Dawson. "2006 was the last competitive primary on both sides with 5,000 more Republican votes than Democratic," he said.

2018 is also the first year that there is a partisan breakdown of early voting numbers. "In terms of the partisan breakdown, we don't have that for the last three gubernatorial elections. So, you can't really draw any conclusions from these numbers," states Dawson. "It is way too early in the process to make a judgment."

Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted announced that 116,272 absentee ballots were requested by mail and in-person for the May 8 primary. So far, 11,524 Ohioans have voted.

During the 2018 primary elections, voters get to decide on a statewide issue reforming congressional redistricting, various state and local races, as well as 477 local issues across 88 counties. Some of the most high-profile races include the open seat for governor and Sherrod Brown's re-election race for U.S. Senate.

Ohioans have multiple options to cast a ballot. Registered voters can cast an absentee ballot by mail or early in person. They can also vote on Election Day.