(CNN) -- Democratic strategists are becoming increasingly confident that the West Virginia Senate seat of the late Robert Byrd will remain in Democratic hands, believing that momentum is on the side of popular Governor Joe Manchin.

Former President Bill Clinton made his second appearance in the state on Monday to help bolster Manchin's prospects, at the same time that former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani campaigned for Republican candidate John Raese. Sarah Palin also visited the state on Saturday to stump for Raese. "It is the day after Halloween, but there are still a lot of people going around in costumes. If you want a treat, you have to reject a trick," Clinton said. "You don't want to be played for a sucker. You know this man; you've seen what he's done."

"I'm looking out over this beautiful crowd, I'm seeing all these mountain mommas," Palin said to the crowd in Charleston, having a little fun with lyrics from John Denver's iconic song about the state, "Country Roads."

The high profile attention garnered by the Senate race in West Virginia appears to be paying off. According to the Secretary of State's office, over 103,000 residents have voted early, which is the third highest tally in state history.

According to the West Virginia Secretary of State's office, 54% of the ballots cast during the 15-day early voting period came from registered Democrats, mirroring the statewide percentage of people registered to that party.

"That's a good turnout level for us, despite all the gloom and doom predictions," said Derek Scarbro, spokesman for the West Virginia Democratic Party.

Ann Dungeon, chair of the Jefferson County Republican Party, is organizing a volunteer force of nearly two dozen to call Republicans and independents, making sure they cast a vote.

But Dungeon concedes that good old fashioned get out the vote techniques can be tricky in West Virginia, known for scattered communities separated by mountains and valleys.

"We have a lot of rural area in Jefferson County (Harpers Ferry) and quite a few residences on the mountain that are very hard to walk," Dungeon said.

The-CNN-Wire/Atlanta
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