Early voting in Cook County breaks single-day turnout record

A record-breaking 29,968 people early voted in Cook County on Friday, surpassing a single-day turnout record set during the 2008 November presidential election.

Early voting ends Monday in Cook County, and total early voting numbers have broke past records with a whopping 264,343 votes as of early Saturday.

Aside from the presidential election, the U.S. Senate race between incumbent Mark Kirk and challenger Tammy Duckworth is hotly contest and likely bringing out voters.

On Saturday, as voters hit the polls, Kirk and Duckworth hit the campaign trail.

"We're rallying the Cook County suburban vote which is always key to winning the state," Kirk said from his campaign offices.

Young campaign volunteers were on the phones at the offices reminding people to vote on Tuesday.

Duckworth, who is ahead in the polls, got her hair done at a South Side hair salon on Saturday.

"We are down to the wire," Duckworth said. "We're are focused on the get out the vote effort at this point."

Meanwhile, early voting lines were long on Saturday.

"I didn't expect this many people," said Edwin Rodas, who voted at a library in Des Plaines. "I thought I was going to be beating the lines, but as I was talking to people seems to be gaining more and more momentum."

"Because this is such a historic and controversial election, people are eager to participate than they have been previously, hopefully," said Brandon Harrington, who early voted at the Cook County Super Center in Chicago's Loop.