As many of you know I've been working on preparing election data for upload to Dave's App. So far I've completed Illinois, Nevada, Arizona, Minnesota, and also Idaho by request (which is not yet noted on the front page, but is uploaded if you select 2010). For the past couple weeks I've primarily been working on Florida, but have also done preliminary work on some other bigger states (NY, CA, NC, PA) and have also started a few smaller states (UT, MS, NM).
Anyway that brings me to the point of this diary. I expect to have Florida done by Monday at the latest. Yay! Palm Beach and Orlando are what I have left. Let me take a moment to also give a huge shout out to John M. who collects data for Dave Leip's Atlas. The data he forwarded me has been invaluable for Florida in particular. Were it not for John M. - and also jeffmd - I would still be perhaps halfway through Florida at best.
So, my question is what big state I should work on next. These are the options:
California: I have a complete and essentially verified data set. Barring any unforeseen complications as I work with individual counties, the only issue will be the size of the state and matching up precincts to voting districts (which in California's case mainly means merging precinct numbers). The biggest problem will be sorting through thousands of Los Angeles data lines, including a lot of zero precincts, but the overall numbers add up properly for every county. Barring any unexpected speed bumps, the main issue will simply be the time it takes to sift through such a large state.
New York: I have an apparently complete but unverified data set. That means the potential is there for major complications. If I run across data anomalies once I start working with individual counties/precincts, then obviously I'll have to deal with whatever it is at the time. I also don't know yet how challenging New York City might be in particular. Of the big-city Upstate counties, the only one that seems as if it's likely to give me issues is Albany County.
Pennsylvania: I have a mostly complete and only partially verified data set. So, with Pennsylvania, the main issue will be procuring a full statewide data set. Until I turn my full attention to the state, I'm unsure how problematic that may be.
So, it's up to y'all again! As I wrap up Florida, I'll focus my attention on whatever big state wins the poll below. I'm also likely to try and pop out some of the smaller states during the transition, as I did when shifting from Illinois to Florida.
Please vote! Oh, and if anyone is working on any of these states then please let me know in comments. I have no desire to sort through 4883 Los Angeles precincts or 6110 New York City precincts if someone else is doing it!!