Board of election offices are preparing for a spike in absentee ballots. In presidential election years, more people want to make sure their voice is heard. But in Oneida County, the number of applications is unusually high. Cara Thomas has more.

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ONEIDA COUNTY, N.Y. -- For most board of election offices, the average number of absentee ballots applied for is between 2,000 and 3,000. But in Oneida County, they've had nearly 6,000 people apply. And they're not exactly sure why.

Commissioners say they've noticed an increase in interested college students and volunteers helping with Sandy devastation have also applied. But 6,000 ballots is still extremely high.

If the presidential race is tight, these ballots will play a huge role in New York State's numbers.

"You could easily see where unless they sway one way or another in some of the other states. We could be hanging out and waiting for final results for a few days," said Pam Mandryck.

The board of elections says even though there's been such a large amount of absentee ballots, they're still expecting a good turnout at the polls on Tuesday.