Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The election of 2012 is well under way though election day is still more than a month away. Democrats have the absentee ballot lead, with voters already returning 8,800 ballots to Republicans’ 2,600 as of Friday. However, Republicans have a voter registration advantage and say they’ll have a strong turnout on Election Day. Early voting began Thursday.

GRUNDY CENTER, Iowa (AP) – A Iowa wood veneer company in Grundy Center has laid off more than half its workers because of slow sales. KWWL reports that the R.S. Bacon Veneer Company laid off almost 50 workers on Friday. The company has been one of Grundy Center’s largest employers for over 40-years.

KEOKUK, Iowa (AP) – An 18-year-old Keokuk man has been acquitted for shooting another man while trying to protect his mother during an argument this summer. Jurors found Colton Dobson not guilty on Thursday after a three-day trial. He had been charged with willfully injuring 27-year-old Tim Mondon with a shotgun on July 14th.

CHARITON, Iowa (AP) – Authorities are investigating a crash that killed three Ottumwa women when their vehicle collided with a pickup truck in south-central Iowa. The crash happened on Highway 34 west of Chariton around 9 p.m. Saturday, killing 56-year-old Olga Palencia, 66-year-old Dolores Rodas and 44-year-old Julieta Mendez. The truck’s driver, 19-year-old Garrett Hollinrake of Knoxville, was injured and taken to a Lucas County hospital.