In the long run, congressional races favor Republicans

[Very_Boring_Name]

If you're a party strategist, you don't want to be winning races by huge margins. It's better to win by 55-45 than it is to win by 75-35, because it means that your support is spread out amongst different districts, rather than all being congregated within a few districts. Nationwide, democrats virtually always take more overall votes than republicans, yet a disproportionate number of seats go for republicans because their support is evenly spread out. It's just kind of depressing to think about. A more proportional representation of votes would be fairer, but republicans would never ever allow that to happen.

[Richardo]

1. Congressional races favor those who draw the districts - and lately it's too often been the GOP

[theophilus]

2. In the long run, we'll all be dead. Also: What Richardo said. n/t

[Botany]

3. I know it is about the districts but why anybody w/ a ....

.... vagina would ever vote for a republican is beyond me. Their control over
the media and the message makes people forget just how mean spirited and
beholden to the rich and powerful they are.

The republicans as a % of America are a shrinking # and how we beat those
no good anti eduction / science / environment / the working person is with
the one thing they fear more then anything and that is the truth and turning
out the vote.

[aquart]

4. Two-year terms are not a long run.

And your "proportional representation" is a pile o' crap.

Our party dropped the ball on its foot KNOWING that redistricting was coming up.

But here's the thing. The old white guy party is making its last stand. It is grabbing everything there is to grab before it is so permanently outnumbered that it's only an ugly memory.

What we have now is not necessarily anything like we'll face in five or ten years.

Remember: the banking system is still wildly unsound and unregulated.

Remember: climate change is going to cause HUGE population movement.

So even the districts they think they have forever may turn on them.

You don't remember the Dust Bowl, do you? Congress is futzing over stupid crap while the big and necessary planning is going unmade.

Did you see what happened to Russian wheat last summer? How's our wheat? How are our bees?

Don't assume anything.

[xchrom]

7. +1 brazillion. Nt

[karnac]

5. I beg to differ

Apart from white folk, all the other demographics are going wildly democratic. And it's going to stay that way for a long time.

Hispanics, though conservative in nature have been severely alienated from republicans due to immigration issues. They are growing fast and have overtaken blacks as the largest minority. Very likely they will BE the majority in 20 years..

Blacks, totally alienated.

Asian, only partially but they are not growing much.

Arab American, Totally alienated from republicans. for the foreseeable future.

Jewish, liberal.

I would agree that the movement from from cities to the 'burbs has slowed the demise of republican strength. But whites are not growing in population at all.


Just a matter of time.

[Very_Boring_Name]

8. All of those groups generally congregate in urban areas

A republican with 400,000 constituents has just as much voting power as a Democrat with 900,000 constituents.

[Atman]

6. In the short run, you don't know what you're talking about.

In the long run, your lack of insight will be revealed. Elections, despite some of the short-term setbacks we appear to have suffered, involve a lot more than wanting to win by a certain margin. There are demographics, population shifts, not to mention the meat-and-potato issues that impact all Americans. Demographically, Republicans are doomed. Might not be this year, might not be in 2012, but in the real long run, the GOP cannot sustain it's rich-white-guy/stupid white guy demographic. There aren't enough of them, and they're numbers are getting fewer.