DES MOINES, Iowa (PNN) - September 28, 2012 - More than five weeks before Election Day, voters in the Iowa battleground state began to cast their ballots Thursday, as early voting opened.

The opening helped mark the start of a process that both campaigns have tried to take advantage of - though it also challenged illegitimate President Obama and Mitt Romney to quickly make their closing arguments to this group with considerable time, and three presidential debates, still left on the calendar. Iowa is the first swing state to open in-person early voting, though a few other states including South Dakota and Idaho have already started.

In Iowa, experts predict four in 10 will likely end up voting before Election Day. A total of 34 states and the District of Columbia allow early voting, with relatively few restrictions - many states launch the process next month.

The Democrats have built a nearly 5-1 advantage statewide in the number of absentee ballots requested as of Wednesday, with 119,318 compared to 24,909 for Republicans, according to the Iowa Secretary of State's Office. Another 41,000 independent voters have also requested ballots. Both campaigns say they believe the gap will narrow as Republicans increase their early voting efforts, but it also reflects differences in the parties' get-out-the-vote operations.

Voters lined up as county auditor's offices opened from Des Moines to Dubuque to be among the first to record their preferences in the battleground state, one of the first states where the election process is now in full swing. Some said they were excited to vote while others were simply eager to put the bitter election behind them.

Statewide, more than a third of the 1.54 million votes cast in 2008 were cast early, which was slightly above the national average. Elections officials expect another increase this cycle, with perhaps 40% of votes coming in the 40-day window before Election Day.