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The second guessing over Florida’s move to an early primary is over. Republican leaders are patting themselves on the back for making the state relevant in choosing their Presidential nominee, and Florida GOP voters are already lining up to make their votes count.

More than 4 hundred thousand GOP voters have already requested absentee ballots.

Television ads are starting to hit Florida airwaves,

And mailboxes will soon be filling up with postcards from candidates, Florida’s move to an early primary date is making the state a player says FSU political scientist Bob Jackson.

“You know, I think Florida is really, if not proving, demonstrating that this early move enabled it to have that influence,” says Jackson.

The state is paying a price…losing half of it’s delegates…maybe. The National party is already going easy on state Republicans.

The national party had a chance to get tough with Florida Republicans by enforcing a rule that would have given proportional delegates to each of the candidates, but it didn’t, and that only makes Florida’s primary that much more important.

Republican Party of Florida Spokesman Brian Hughes says the early date is giving Florida voters the attention they deserve. “Campaigns have to come here and prove that they are viable. They have to prove they have organization, and resources to run a big large scale campaign. And that’s what its going to take to beat Barack Obama, so its a good testing ground for these candidates” says Hughes.

Florida will be the first big state to vote…the question is whether it will do for one candidate what it did four years ago…propel them to the nomination.

The number of absentee ballots requested by Florida Republicans is more than three times the number of people who participated in the Iowa Caucuses, and it is about twice the number expected to cast a ballot in New Hampshire.