Election Post 5: Swing States

There are many reasons that there a still a few swing states in the Presidential election this year. Over the past few decades, people have become less reliant on political parties to base their vote off of. So it's narrowed down to the individual candidate's profile and what policies are most important to a person voting. In this years election, main factors that affect voting are: one, there has never been a black president, so people are hesitant to vote for Democrat Barack Obama, which should have nothing to do with his race; two, the Republican Vice President that John McCain nominated is female, and many American's fear that Sarah Palin is not qualified for the job; three, our ecomony is facing it's biggest crisis since the Great Depression and whoever wins President will decide on the course of action for the country, it will either be a positive or negative impact but that cannot be based on each candidate.

According to a USAToday article, the current swing states for the 2008 election are: Washington, Oregon, Florida, Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico, California, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Minnesota, Wisconsin. Iowa and Missouri. It is said that McCain's "maverick" appeal will help him win New Hampshire and other states because of the number of unaffiliated voters. However, in the Southern states that are up for grabs, Obama is making a huge impression upon the large African American population, and those who have been unlikely to vote in previous elections. One struggle Obama has, especially in a state like West Virginia, is his inability to compromise with the working class whites who are a big part of the electoral vote. One surprising state that has voted Republican strongly since 1964, Indiana, is actually shifting towards a Democratic vote.