April 03, 2008
Net Loss 6,700 GOP Voters In NC
Thanks to a team of gracious number-crunchers at the North Carolina State Board of Elections, here’s another fascinating tidbit about voter registration in the state -- custom-crafted at NBC/NJ's request.
It’s big news that the number of NEW registrations is off the charts here in the Tar Heel State, as many voters wake up to the blinding spotlight of presidential politics aimed unexpectedly in their squinting eyes. Over 165,000 previously unregistered voters have signed up since the first of the year.
But there’s also a lot of movement within the ranks of registered voters. Between January and March of this year, more than 30,000 currently registered voters changed their party identification. More than 12,000 of those, about 40%, are previously Republican voters who have moved OUT of the party to register either as Democrats or as unaffiliated voters able to participate in either primary on May 6th. Subtract from that the number of Dems and unaffiliated voters who moved into the GOP, and there’s still a net LOSS of about 6,700 Republican voters in three months. In contrast, the Democratic party nabbed a net of about 4,000 voters – previously Republican or unaffiliated – who moved into the D column. And the unaffiliated group, which gained almost 50,000 new voters in the last three months, added an additional 2,700 net from the shuffle.
Why am I telling you all this? Unaffiliateds are the big bold wildcard in the Carolina election – they’re difficult to poll and even harder to target, and their motivations are all over the map. From Republicans hoping to throw a monkey wrench in the Democratic primary at Rush Limbaugh’s urging, to disenchanted partisans seeking a unity candidate, to last-minute undecideds, these are the voters who could surprise us all.
(NBC/NJ's CARRIE DANN)
Posted at 08:28 AM
Comments
Republicans voting for Hillary for McCain's advantage in November speaks volumes about the electability of Hillary Clinton. Not only will she likely not win in November she'll cost the Democrats the opportunity to have a working majority in the house and the senate. Hillary will attract the Republicans who would otherwise sit this one out and they will vote a against her and unfortunately also against all the Democrats running for the senate/congress.
Save Democracy | 04.03.08 09:32 AM
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I'm not surprised that Republicans are (temporarily) becoming Democrats in time for the primaries. My dad--a life-long, dead-from-the-neck-up Republican--said years ago that he & other GOP-ers do that in order to try to get the weaker Dem candidate nominated so that their GOP candidate has a stronger chance. Dirty pool.
KindBetty | 04.03.08 09:50 AM
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Yeah, and in spite of how Republicans seem to vote for Obama in primaries, that will shift back into Republican margin come November. Why in heck do you think they're doing this? Obama IS the weaker Dem. candidate. Too bad the Dems haven't figured this out yet! LOL
Laura J Walker | 04.03.08 06:19 PM
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ELECTION 2008: COMMISSIONER OF INSURANCE FOR
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Nathaniel Cooper | 04.18.08 11:24 PM
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