Them Changes

There are changes going on in the American electorate, and by and large they don't spell good news for the Republican Party. It boils down to this. In several key states this election season, the number of registered Democrats is growing, while the number of registered Republicans is declining. The number of voters registering with no party at all is also growing rapidly.

The numbers have implications well beyond this year's presidential balloting. Races for the House, Senate, and state legislatures will also be affected. The state races are important because they're the ones who draw congressional districts each decade after the census is taken. Demographers and political pundits have varying reasons for this shift. Some say the economy and the war have dealt the GOP a body blow.

It could be the rise in the number of younger voters settling in traditionally Republican states that explains, for example, why there were 28 Republican governors and 22 Democrats after the 2004 election, and now those numbers have been reversed. Whatever the reason, it's being seen as a blessing for Democrats and a challenge for Republicans. 

Yet these new numbers don't by any means make the election of Barack Obama a slam dunk. Just because someone registers with a particular party doesn't necessarily mean the person will vote for that party's standard bearer. One figures the Obama camp knows this, and is working to woo these new Democrats and independents with vigor.

Otherwise, the Democrats could blow this.