Difference between revisions of "Swing state"
(improved) |
(improved) |
||
| Line 11: | Line 11: | ||
!Electoral Votes in 2012 | !Electoral Votes in 2012 | ||
|- | |- | ||
| − | |Toss | + | |Toss up |
| − | | | + | |Ohio |
| − | |6% | + | |4.6% |
| − | | | + | |Ohio voted Republican in the 2010 elections, but the public unions repealed the collective bargaining reforms by popular vote. This indicates heavy union influence who always vote democrat. |
| − | | | + | |18 |
|- | |- | ||
|Toss-up | |Toss-up | ||
| − | | | + | |Iowa |
| − | | | + | |9.5% |
| − | | | + | | |
| − | | | + | |6 |
|- | |- | ||
| | | | ||
| Line 28: | Line 28: | ||
|[[Pro-life]], pro-[[Christian]] [[Tim Tebow]]'s phenomenal success for the Denver Broncos is changing the culture there. | |[[Pro-life]], pro-[[Christian]] [[Tim Tebow]]'s phenomenal success for the Denver Broncos is changing the culture there. | ||
|9 | |9 | ||
| + | |- | ||
| + | |Toss-up | ||
| + | |Virginia | ||
| + | |6% | ||
| + | |Elected a Republican governor, [[Bob McDonnell]], in 2009. In the 2011 elections the Republican party took the state senate, giving them control over both houses of the legislature. '''Obama will probably lose this state by 5-10 points in 2012'''. | ||
| + | |13 | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Romney leads by 7 points as of May | |Romney leads by 7 points as of May | ||
| Line 35: | Line 41: | ||
|29 | |29 | ||
|- | |- | ||
| − | | | + | |Leaning Democratic |
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
|Wisconsin | |Wisconsin | ||
|13.9% | |13.9% | ||
| Line 53: | Line 47: | ||
|10 | |10 | ||
|- | |- | ||
| − | | | + | |Leaning Republican win due to [[same-sex marriage]] issue. |
|North Carolina | |North Carolina | ||
|0.3% | |0.3% | ||
| Line 59: | Line 53: | ||
|15 | |15 | ||
|- | |- | ||
| − | | | + | |Leaning Democratic |
|Nevada | |Nevada | ||
|12.5% | |12.5% | ||
| Line 65: | Line 59: | ||
|6 | |6 | ||
|- | |- | ||
| − | | | + | |Leaning Democratic |
|New Hampshire | |New Hampshire | ||
| − | | | + | |9.6% |
| + | |Romney has some roots here and was governor of nearby Massachusetts | ||
|4 | |4 | ||
| − | |||
|} | |} | ||
| − | + | Additional states that Obama carried by a wide margin in 2008 might become possibilities for a Romney victory in 2012 if he improves in the polls: | |
{| class="wikitable" | {| class="wikitable" | ||
|- | |- | ||
| Line 85: | Line 79: | ||
|16 | |16 | ||
|- | |- | ||
| − | | | + | |Pennsylvania |
| − | | | + | |10% |
| − | | | + | |Obama's disapproval rating is high: 54%, and [[Republicans]] swept the elections in 2010; also, Obama polled poorly here in 2008 against [[Hillary Clinton]].<ref>[http://www.quinnipiac.edu/x1327.xml?ReleaseID=1653 Quinnipiac poll done late September 2011]</ref> |
| − | | | + | |20 |
|- | |- | ||
|New Mexico | |New Mexico | ||
Revision as of 15:54, August 19, 2012
Swing states are states in which neither the Republican nor Democratic candidate has a clear majority of the voters' support prior to a Presidential election, and therefore could "swing" the election results in either direction. They are also known as "battleground states" because they are where the majority of the campaigning takes place for both parties. Since states that consistently express a preference for either the Democratic of Republican candidate are usually referred to as blue states and red states, respectively, these states are also called "purple states" in order to highlight their mixed demographical nature. It is expected that hundreds of millions of dollars in negative ads by Super PACs will be spent in these swing states in the fall of 2012.
Here are the key swing states for the Presidential Election 2012: Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, Ohio and Virginia.[1] Assuming that Republicans win Florida, Virginia and New Hampshire -- Romney has a home in New Hampshire and Virginia is now solidly Republican -- the entire election could be decided in only Colorado, Iowa, Nevada and Ohio.
| Expected winner 2012 | State | Margin of Obama's win in 2008 | Indicators | Electoral Votes in 2012 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toss up | Ohio | 4.6% | Ohio voted Republican in the 2010 elections, but the public unions repealed the collective bargaining reforms by popular vote. This indicates heavy union influence who always vote democrat. | 18 |
| Toss-up | Iowa | 9.5% | 6 | |
| Colorado | 9% | Pro-life, pro-Christian Tim Tebow's phenomenal success for the Denver Broncos is changing the culture there. | 9 | |
| Toss-up | Virginia | 6% | Elected a Republican governor, Bob McDonnell, in 2009. In the 2011 elections the Republican party took the state senate, giving them control over both houses of the legislature. Obama will probably lose this state by 5-10 points in 2012. | 13 |
| Romney leads by 7 points as of May | Florida | 2.8% | Elected a Republican for both governor and Senate in the 2010 midterm elections; however, Governor Rick Scott is currently (Dec. 2011) very unpopular in the state. Obama's approval in the state is below 50% and without Florida his reelection is unlikely. | 29 |
| Leaning Democratic | Wisconsin | 13.9% | Elected Republicans to the state legislature, governor's office, and Senate in 2010. Despite much complaining by Democrats and their labor union allies, they failed to recall enough republican legislators for a majority, failed to defeat Justice David Prosser in the Supreme Court election. The final blow that put Wisconsin in play for the 2012 election was when Governor Scott Walker defeated his recall election by a wider margin than he was originally elected in 2010. | 10 |
| Leaning Republican win due to same-sex marriage issue. | North Carolina | 0.3% | The current Democratic governor, Bev Perdue, is highly unpopular and polling badly, especially in the wake of recent scandals among her staff. | 15 |
| Leaning Democratic | Nevada | 12.5% | A recent special election for the state's 2nd congressional district was predicted to be competitive but resulted in a decisive victory for Republican Mark Amodei. Harry Reid won reelection in 2010 despite Tea Party opposition, but this may have been due to discrepancies and corruption in the voting process. | 6 |
| Leaning Democratic | New Hampshire | 9.6% | Romney has some roots here and was governor of nearby Massachusetts | 4 |
Additional states that Obama carried by a wide margin in 2008 might become possibilities for a Romney victory in 2012 if he improves in the polls:
| State | Margin of Obama's win in 2008 | Indicators | Electoral Votes in 2012 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan | 16% | Mitt Romney, though not ideal for the average conservative, grew up in Michigan and could put it into play. His father, George Romney, served as governor of the state. | 16 |
| Pennsylvania | 10% | Obama's disapproval rating is high: 54%, and Republicans swept the elections in 2010; also, Obama polled poorly here in 2008 against Hillary Clinton.[2] | 20 |
| New Mexico | 15% | 5 |
Affect on Policy
Swing state politics is having an enormous influence on policy: Obama's abrupt change in deportation policy was probably due to how Mitt Romney has erased Obama's lead in the key swing state of Colorado, and narrowed the lead in Nevada and Virginia, all of which have large Hispanic populations.[3]
2008 Swing States
- Colorado
- Florida
- Iowa
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- New Hampshire
- New Mexico
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- Wisconsin
- Virginia
See also
External links
- Analysis of Electoral College and popular vote
- July polling: Romney leads Obama, 51 percent to 43 percent in 15 swing states