Little indicators in the Hamptons - Not Clinton country anymore

[GoneOffShore]

Granted that this is fluff from the Style section of the Sunday NYT.

But it is interesting.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/11/fashion/11mono.html?_r=1&ref=style&oref=slogin

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As of Friday, the tally, handwritten on a sheet of Monogram Shop stationery in the window, was: Barack Obama, 637; Hillary Rodham Clinton, 329; John McCain, 89.

The cup count seems as important to some Hamptonites as results of the West Virginia primary. The sidewalk in front of the store, and the store itself, have become scenes of spontaneous political debate spurred by the posting of the count.

“What I find interesting about that cup count,” said Leonore Blitz, a fund-raiser and organizer for the Obama campaign and a regular Hamptons weekender, “is that’s the heart of Clinton country. There’s probably a couple of thousand people in East Hampton alone who have been to fund-raisers for the Clintons. Obama being ahead speaks to the larger picture that he is a transformational figure and a transgenerational leader.”

Those are big conclusions to draw over the sale of a few hundred plastic cups. With partisan passions running high, it is no surprise that there are blatant attempts to manipulate the cup count by buying in bulk. Jane Maynard, a supporter of Senator McCain, did not like the look of the numbers last weekend, so she bought 26 McCain 2008 cups.
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At the end of August that year (2004), 2,940 cups emblazoned with Kerry-Edwards had been sold, and 1,344 for Bush-Cheney, a huge Democratic lead. But in September and October, the Kerry-Edwards ticket netted 806 cups and Bush-Cheney sold 706, a notable narrowing for an area considered a Democratic stronghold.

The trend echoed what was happening in the rest of the country. The Kerry ticket led in the cup count come the morning of Election Day — but not by enough, it is thought around East Hampton, to have left anybody feeling secure about the Democrats’ chances of winning the White House. “I believe the cups know the truth,” Ms. Smith said.

In the last week, as calls for Mrs. Clinton to drop out of the race have intensified, the Obama cup lead has grown, with the Illinois senator gaining 10 since Monday and Mrs. Clinton just 1. Mr. McCain has held steady at 89.

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