Post by pavel on Feb 22, 2016 3:01:46 GMT -6
While Republicans battle one another in the primaries over who is the true conservative, Democrats should be concentrating on expanding their base for the general election in November.
Whether their nominee is Bernie Sanders or Hillary Clinton, Democrats can win by forging a new rainbow coalition of disparate groups who realize Republicans do not represent their interests. This will require work on what is often referred to as the “ground game.”
Let’s do the numbers. (Actually, these estimates and projections have been done for us by some of the very best demographers and survey researchers at the Pew Research Center.)
Women: Relentless assaults on Obamacare and Planned Parenthood are often viewed as Republican assaults on women themselves, making the most vulnerable women among the best candidates for Democratic mobilization. In 2012, women comprised 53 percent of all voters and 55 percent of those voting for Obama.
White independents: Washington Post exit polls reported that only 39 percent of white voters in 2012 supported President Barack Obama. While my own research shows clear evidence of party polarization along racial lines, targeting voters by race alone will not win. With more precise identification, whites who joined the Greens in support of Ralph Nader in 2000 and 2004, and gun-control advocates and Occupy Wall Street activists can be drawn back into the Democratic base with precision targeting and policies addressing their self-interests.
Read more: www.mysanantonio.com/opinion/commentary/article/Democrats-need-new-rainbow-coalition-to-win-6843069.php
Whether their nominee is Bernie Sanders or Hillary Clinton, Democrats can win by forging a new rainbow coalition of disparate groups who realize Republicans do not represent their interests. This will require work on what is often referred to as the “ground game.”
Let’s do the numbers. (Actually, these estimates and projections have been done for us by some of the very best demographers and survey researchers at the Pew Research Center.)
Women: Relentless assaults on Obamacare and Planned Parenthood are often viewed as Republican assaults on women themselves, making the most vulnerable women among the best candidates for Democratic mobilization. In 2012, women comprised 53 percent of all voters and 55 percent of those voting for Obama.
White independents: Washington Post exit polls reported that only 39 percent of white voters in 2012 supported President Barack Obama. While my own research shows clear evidence of party polarization along racial lines, targeting voters by race alone will not win. With more precise identification, whites who joined the Greens in support of Ralph Nader in 2000 and 2004, and gun-control advocates and Occupy Wall Street activists can be drawn back into the Democratic base with precision targeting and policies addressing their self-interests.
Read more: www.mysanantonio.com/opinion/commentary/article/Democrats-need-new-rainbow-coalition-to-win-6843069.php