GARFIELD COUNTY, Colo. -- Election workers in Garfield County have counted more than 22,000 ballots and the presidential race is tied.

Garfield County's election Web site shows a preliminary total of 11,223 votes for McCain/Palin and 11, 223 votes for Obama/Biden.

There are 14 other candidates for president who got a total of 359 votes.

There are 330 provisional ballots to verify and count by Nov. 18.

“Isn’t that amazing?” County Clerk Jean Alberico told the Glenwood newspaper, “I’ve not seen a tie in a big race like this where we’ve had over 20,000 votes cast. … It just says that it’s a real interesting county.”

County election workers told the newspaper they were shocked around 3:30 a.m. Wednesday to realize the preliminary results showed an improbable tie between the two presidential candidates.

Garfield County has voted Republican in 18 of the past 22 presidential elections dating back to the 1920 election between Republican Warren Harding and Democrat James Cox.

The only Democratic presidential candidates to receive the majority of votes in Garfield County were Franklin Roosevelt in 1932 and 1936, Lyndon Johnson in 1964, and Bill Clinton in 1992.