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Voting stations across the country are already preparing for a general election race that is expected to churn out record numbers of voters.

The heated race between Sen.'s Barack Obama and John McCain has not only shaken the dust off American voters (even spurring large chunks of increasingly apolitical citizens into everything from volunteering to political activism) but has also caused a noticeable shift in party numbers as some voters cross party lines.

So how does Nye County, one of the handfuls of places in the entire country where Republican Ron Paul nearly edged out Mitt Romney, reflect the shifting trends of national voters?

Historically, Nevada is a staunchly Republican state and Nye County a stalwart bastion of some of the most libertarian citizens of the nation.

So it's not entirely surprising that six months ago the Republican Party dominated Nye County with 9,547 active Republican voters, according to the Secretary of State's Web site.

That's 44 percent of the county's active voters.

Nye Democrats totaled 7,976 party members, or 38 percent.

Non-partisan voters totaled 2,839, the next largest segment at 13 percent.

The fourth largest slice of the voting pie was made up of the Independent Party, with 1,052 members (almost 5 percent of voters).

Twenty-six voters registered with the Green Party, 170 registered as Libertarian, 14 registered with the Natural Law party, and the remaining 24 voting citizens of Nye County were registered with all other parties.

While some states or counties have seen dramatic drops or raises for either Republicans or Democrats, Nye County, on the other hand, seems mostly to be bolstering its respective troops.

The number of active voters increased from 21,646 to 22,541, meaning 845 more people are expected to cast a vote this election.

The number of Nye Democrats increased to 8,421 (an increase of 445 people).

County Republicans have also increased their support base since January, increasing to 9,759, or 212 additional voters, slightly less than half of the Democrats' gain in pure numbers.

This doesn't, however, reflect Nye County voters choosing a side.

The number of non-partisan voters also increased to 2,985. That's 146 people who intend to vote but not be labeled with a party when doing so.

Even the Green Party has garnered two more voters, the Libertarians have seven more people registered with their party and whatever constitutes "Other (All others)" by the Secretary of State's standards have gained a single voter.

Only the Independent Party has suffered a loss, decreasing by three members, but still making up the fourth largest majority of voters.

Whatever party with which Nye County voters are registered, one thing seems certain: More people will be voting this election cycle.

And that's good news no matter your party.