heardThere has already been some post-election analysis going on elsewhere. I thought it might be useful to start up a thread focussed on this particular issue. I'll post a few articles & observations from elsewhere & hopefully get some good responses.
The question was sparked by a couple of interesting observations I heard (I'm hoping I remember them correctly).
The first was that there are a bloc of states (about 16) that have voted Democrat in the past 9 Presidential elections. Together they have about 240 EC votes. The problem for the GOP is obvious.
The other was that the Dems have won the popular vote in 5 of the last 6 Presidential elections. While the EC is what matters, it is just as obviously easier to win if you are consistently getting the most votes.
If true, these seem to indicate a long term problem for the GOP in Presidential elections. While the Democrats are always capable of nominating tragically awful candidates (and will probably do so again), the GOP can't really rely on this as a strategy (given that they are capable of much the same).
I am not jumping into the 'GOP is finished' category. I've seen too many political eulogies finish with the 'corpse' jumping to life to do that. Still, there are some intresting questions that arise. So, is there a long term problem? Is there an entrenched or entrenching Democrat advantage? What should the GOP do to increase its chances in future Presidential elections?
The question was sparked by a couple of interesting observations I heard (I'm hoping I remember them correctly).
The first was that there are a bloc of states (about 16) that have voted Democrat in the past 9 Presidential elections. Together they have about 240 EC votes. The problem for the GOP is obvious.
The other was that the Dems have won the popular vote in 5 of the last 6 Presidential elections. While the EC is what matters, it is just as obviously easier to win if you are consistently getting the most votes.
If true, these seem to indicate a long term problem for the GOP in Presidential elections. While the Democrats are always capable of nominating tragically awful candidates (and will probably do so again), the GOP can't really rely on this as a strategy (given that they are capable of much the same).
I am not jumping into the 'GOP is finished' category. I've seen too many political eulogies finish with the 'corpse' jumping to life to do that. Still, there are some intresting questions that arise. So, is there a long term problem? Is there an entrenched or entrenching Democrat advantage? What should the GOP do to increase its chances in future Presidential elections?
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