Iowa's secretary of state announced today that he expects final tallies to show more than 100,000 party registration changes on caucus night.

Democrat Michael Mauro said more than 52,500 party changes have been registered so far, with more than 43,000 of them changing their registration to Democrat.

County auditors continue to sort through the voter registration forms filed on Jan. 3, when nearly 350,000 Iowans cast their support for a presidential candidate. Mauro also said auditors have processed nearly 7,000 new registrations so far.

Pundits and political insiders surmised on caucus night that Illinois Sen. Barack Obama was the beneficiary of a heavy independent vote because of his margin of victory. Pre-caucus polling had him in a head-to-head battle among Democratic voters with Sen. Hillary Clinton.

With the excitement generated by the caucus, Mauro said he hopes the energy level continues through the year leading up to November's general election.

"From the significant turnout numbers at the caucuses, it is clear Iowa voters have taken their first in the nation caucus status seriously," Mauro said. "I anticipate continued high voter turnout all the way to the general election."

See Mauro's press release