New polls show Senator Maria Cantwell heading toward reelection and Darcy Burner in a tie with the incumbent congressman. The polls, while encouraging to supporters of the two Democrats, aren’t enough.

Consider this week’s New York Times Magazine story about how Republicans are using a database of voting-age residents to turn out more sympathetic voters. The system worked in Ohio in 2004 and recently won elections in Rhode Island and California that polls had suggested would be closer.

The system has since been expanded nationwide with more comprehensive data, Republican Chairman Ken Mehlman said. Precinct canvassers use Google Earth to map their routes with ever-more precision. “In Ohio, in ’04, we got the tip of the iceberg,” Mehlman is quoted as saying. “What we did over the last two years is we got the entire iceberg.”

If the elections here are close, that turnout machine could determine the outcome.