DENVER – Colorado, the host of Wednesday’s first presidential debate, has offered Democrats a blueprint toward future political success as the state turns away from the attitudes and demographics that once made it a Republican stronghold.
The political terrain here has changed rapidly since the days when George W. Bush won the state by 9 points in 2000 and 5 points in his 2004 re-election bid. Rather, Colorado has become an incubator for Democratic success. The state was once dominated by Republicans, but Democrat Ken Salazar's 2004 Senate race victory helped break the GOP stranglehold. Democrats now hold the governorship and both Senate seats.
What has gone on here closely mirrors the political shifts happening at the national level. A growing Latino population has become increasingly Democratic, putting the GOP at a natural “disadvantage,” according to one state lawmaker. And Republican candidates face tremendous pressure to cater to influential conservatives in the party, giving Democrats ample space in the center for the general election.
“We’re Western Democrats. We’re very different from East Coast Democrats,” said Mike Melanson, a Democratic operative in Colorado and senior partner at OnSight Public Affairs. “And as long as you brand yourself in that tradition, then you, as a Democrat, can do well.”
http://nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/10/02/14184808-national-trends-at-work-in-battleground-colorado
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