You CAN vote early in EVERY battleground state, though it's much easier in some of them than in others. In Ohio, Pennsylvania, and three other key battleground states, you need to know what to say on an application for an absentee ballot. Republicans know, and are telling everybody likely to vote for their ticket what to say and do to vote early, anywhere in this country. If we want to win, we'd better do likewise.
The table below lists 12 key battleground states and 5 possible swing states in groups according to how difficult it is to vote early. Here's a quick summary:
CRUCIAL BATTLEGROUND STATES:
EASY to vote early: FL IA NV NM WI. Vote early in person or by absentee ballot with no excuse required.
Easy to vote early in person: WV
Easy to vote early by mail: OR
Vote early in person or absentee, with an acceptable excuse: MN MO NH OH PA
POSSIBLE SWING STATES:
EASY to vote early: AZ AR CO NC WA. Vote early in person or by absentee ballot, with no excuse required.
Details follow. The research for this table comes from linked, well-funded early-voting operations of the big business wing of the Republican party, at
http://www.agc.org/galleries/default-file/Oct04constructor.pdf , page 27. Another site of theirs, at
http://www.ezvote.org , provides zip-code level information. Early voting requirements vary not only by state but by county within a state.
I'll post a similar table and summary for the other 33 states and DC if there's interest.