Washington, D.C. ? Democrats are dominating early voting in six key states President Bush won four years ago, forcing Republican John McCain to play catch-up even before Election Day arrives.

Democrats outnumber Republicans among early voters in Iowa, North Carolina, Florida, Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada, according to statistics from election and party officials in those states. Bush won all six in 2004, and McCain needs to win most of them to claim the White House this year.

Georgia, another red state, doesn’t track early voters by party, but it does by race. About 1.4 million Georgians have already cast ballots, and blacks are voting in disproportionate numbers. Black voters overwhelmingly support Democrat Barack Obama, who is bidding to become the nation’s first black president.

Voters can always cross party lines and no vote totals are announced until Election Day, but the early indications clearly favor Obama. It is unclear, however, whether they will translate into success on Nov. 4 because never before have so many Americans cast their votes before Election Day.