DEMOCRATS MAKE GAINS DEMOCRATS MAKE GAINS Democrats have made gains over Republicans since 2004 in most battleground states that register voters by party affiliation: State Democrats Republicans Colorado +13,000 -90,000 Florida +130,000 -1,000 Iowa +80,000 -23,000 Nevada +59,000 -25,000 New Hampshire +35,000 -1,000 New Mexico +12,000 +1,000 North Carolina +137,000 +50,000 Pennsylvania +372,000 -198,000 Source: Secretaries of state FAIRFAX, Va.  A record-breaking season for voter registration drives ends Monday in nearly half the nation's states, closing the books on a process that has helped Democrats and hurt Republicans in many states crucial to the fortunes of Barack Obama and John McCain. Democrats have added more than 800,000 voters and Republicans have lost 300,000 in eight of the most tightly fought states in the presidential race: Florida, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Colorado, Iowa, Nevada, New Mexico and New Hampshire. Changes occur when voters switch parties or are removed from registration lists because they moved, died or haven't voted in recent elections. YOUTH MOVEMENT: Signs of electorate shift Some battlegrounds, such as Ohio, Virginia, Missouri, Minnesota and Wisconsin, do not register voters by party. Most have seen registration increases over 2004 as officials prepare for what could be record turnout Nov. 4. UNDECIDED VOTER? Join our debate panel Doug Lewis, executive director of the Election Center, which represents state and county election offices, expects an all-time high, surpassing the 177 million registered in 2004. "It's going to be a tsunami of voters," he said. Stacks of applications have been arriving daily at the Office of Elections in Fairfax, Va., the largest county in one of the most closely watched states this year. "The staff is just trying to process them as fast as we can," county registrar Rokey Suleman said. Much of the work signing up new voters has been done by Democrat Obama's campaign, as well as the political parties. In Pennsylvania, Democratic registration is up 400,000 from 2004; Republicans have lost 200,000. Jon Carson, Obama's national field director, says the latest data doesn't capture a "massive spike" in registrations last week. Lines could form when registration closes Monday in 18 states and the District of Columbia. Some states have later deadlines; 10 allow Election Day registration. On Monday, two organizations that seek to register young, minority and low-income Americans — Project Vote and the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) — will announce that they helped 1.3 million people register or update their information this year. More than half of them are in Ohio, Michigan, Florida and Pennsylvania, 60% are under 30 and about two-thirds are minorities, said Michael Slater, executive director of Project Vote. Carmen Arias of ACORN said the faltering economy motivates them. GOP officials admit Democrats did a better job registering voters, but they say Republicans are better at getting voters to the polls, which could help McCain. "These aren't normally people who vote in school board elections," said Rich Beeson, political director for the Republican National Committee. "These are people who need a lot of motivation." State-by-state deadlines, information on registering to vote A list of voter registration deadlines in the 50 states and District of Columbia and where to find more information online. (Story, 1A) Alabama, Oct. 24, sos.state.al.us/elections/Default.aspx Alaska, Oct. 5{+1}, elections.alaska.gov Arizona, Oct. 6 (Monday), azsos.gov/election Arkansas, Oct. 6 (Monday), www.sosweb.state.ar.us/elections.html California, Oct. 20, sos.ca.gov/elections/elections.htm Colorado, Oct. 6 (Monday), elections.colorado.gov/DDefault.aspx Connecticut, Oct. 28, ct.gov/sots/cwp/view.asp?a=3&q=415810 Delaware, Saturday, elections.delaware.gov District of Columbia, Oct. 6 (Monday), dcboee.org Florida, Oct. 6 (Monday), election.dos.state.fl.us Georgia, Oct. 6 (Monday), sos.ga.gov/elections Hawaii, Oct. 6 (Monday), hawaii.gov/elections Idaho, Oct. 10 (Friday){+1}, www.idsos.state.id.us/elect/eleindex.htm Illinois, Tuesday, www.elections.state.il.us Indiana, Oct. 6 (Monday), in.gov/sos/elections Iowa, Oct. 25{+1}, sos.state.ia.us/elections/index.html Kansas, Oct. 20, www.kssos.org/elections/elections.html Kentucky, Oct. 6 (Monday), elect.ky.gov Louisiana, Oct. 6 (Monday), sos.louisiana.gov/tabid/68/Default.aspx Maine, Oct. 14{+1}, maine.gov/sos/cec/elec/index.html Maryland, Oct. 14, elections.state.md.us Massachusetts, Oct. 15, www.sec.state.ma.us/ele Michigan, Oct. 6 (Monday), michigan.gov/sos Minnesota, Oct. 14{+1}, www.sos.state.mn.us/home/index.asp?page=4 Mississippi, Oct. 6 (Monday), www.sos.state.ms.us/elections/elections.asp Missouri, Wednesday, sos.mo.gov/elections Montana, Oct. 6 (Monday){+1}, sos.mt.gov/elb/index.asp Nebraska, Oct. 24, www.sos.state.ne.us/elec Nevada, Oct. 14, sos.state.nv.us/elections New Hampshire, Oct. 25{+1}, www.sos.nh.gov/electionsnew.html New Jersey, Oct. 14, www.state.nj.us/state/elections New Mexico, Tuesday, www.sos.state.nm.us/sos-elections.html New York, Oct. 10 (Friday), www.elections.state.ny.us North Carolina, Oct. 10 (Friday), sboe.state.nc.us North Dakota, Oct. 28, nd.gov/sos/electvote Ohio, Oct. 6 (Monday), www.sos.state.oh.us/SOS/voter.aspx Oklahoma, Oct. 10 (Friday), ok.gov Oregon, Oct. 14, oregonvotes.org Pennsylvania, Oct. 6 (Monday), www.dos.state.pa.us/bcel/site/default.asp Rhode Island, Oct. 4{+1}, www.elections.state.ri.us South Carolina, Oct. 4, scvotes.org South Dakota, Oct. 20, sdsos.gov/electionsvoteregistration/electionsvoteregistration_overview.shtm Tennessee, Oct. 6 (Monday), state.tn.us/sos/election Texas, Oct. 6 (Monday), www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/index.shtml Utah, Oct. 6 (Monday), elections.utah.gov Vermont, Oct. 29, vermont-elections.org/soshome.htm Virginia, Oct. 6 (Monday), www.sbe.virginia.gov/cms Washington, Oct. 4, secstate.wa.gov/elections West Virginia, Oct. 14, wvsos.com/elections/main.htm Wisconsin, Oct. 15{+1}, elections.state.wi.us Wyoming, Oct. 6 (Monday){+1}, soswy.state.wy.us/election/election.htm {+1} — Voters in these states may also register on Election Day Source: National Association of Secretaries of State Guidelines: You share in the USA TODAY community, so please keep your comments smart and civil. Don't attack other readers personally, and keep your language decent. Use the "Report Abuse" button to make a difference. You share in the USA TODAY community, so please keep your comments smart and civil. Don't attack other readers personally, and keep your language decent. Use the "Report Abuse" button to make a difference. Read more