According to Pollster.com, my state, NC (15 electoral college votes) is more of a swing state at the momement than PA (21 votes). I never thought that would be the case. Virginia (13 votes) too, for that matter.

Nor that I would vote in an April primary that actually meant anything. What an election season this has been. I bet we're off the swing list in 3 weeks though, as well as our neighbor to the north. It just can't be that we, who voted against Bill Clinton both times and for Jesse Helms five times, would go for Obama. My head would explode.

As a resident of PA, I'm coming to the opinion that it's time to take us off the list of of swing states. We haven't gone for the GOP in a presidential race since 1988 and all signs point to another win for the democrats here in the Keystone state.

Although Fox "News" seems to think we're still a "battleground state. They were even willing to lie about a show of hands in a PA diner last night. The actual count was 1.5 for McCain (This is counting the Fox "News" reporter, who raised his hand for McCain and some old guy who initially raised his hand, but his wife made him pull it down) and everyone else (including the same old guy who raised his hand twice) in the diner for Obama.

That Fox Report was hilarious!!! It was the epitome of Fox Reporting . . . take the truth and give the "party" interruption in spite of the obvious . . .

Fox is getting as irrelevant as Palin . . .

As a former NC resident, well, for the first time in my adult life, I can say that I am really proud of my former state of residence.

This is hardly surprisingly though. As solid red as NC appears, Jesse Helms has never won by a landslide, and I suspect Erskine Bowles would have won if not for Elizabeth Dole's name recognition. More importantly, it's an increasingly urban state. Both Charlotte and Raleigh are experiencing booms of sorts, and the newcomers tend to come from the northeast.

Yes, Helms isn't NC, and he almost lost to Hunt in 1984...we're no Utah, in terms of being Red. But Erskine Bowles not only lost to Dole but also to Richard Burr, and I think the only reason Edwards ever won here in 1998 is because Lauch Faircloth was just such a toad of man...he had negative charisma. I really don't think Edwards could have held onto his seat.

We are becoming more urban (we're the 10th largest state in terms of population, despite having not a single city with a million inhabitants), but our growth seems typical of sun belt boom areas...much less Boston, much more Houston (people happy with sprawl, unhappy with taxes, not really looking for a cosmopolitan lifestyle for the most part).

As Hispanics are now a significant part of the population, it will be interesting to see how red or blue we are in 20 years, when a lot more of them (plus their American-born children) are voting. I wonder if an anti-immigration Republican will be able to win a Senate seat.

And we may be at that point the only southern state where the Democrats held on so long in the State House and Governors mansion (god knows exactly how) that the demographic trends will have swung back their way.

Radiotone:

Yes, Helms isn't NC, and he almost lost to Hunt in 1984...we're no Utah, in terms of being Red. But Erskine Bowles not only lost to Dole but also to Richard Burr, and I think the only reason Edwards ever won here in 1998 is because Lauch Faircloth was just such a toad of man...he had negative charisma. I really don't think Edwards could have held onto his seat.

We are becoming more urban (we're the 10th largest state in terms of population, despite having not a single city with a million inhabitants), but our growth seems typical of sun belt boom areas...much less Boston, much more Houston (people happy with sprawl, unhappy with taxes, not really looking for a cosmopolitan lifestyle for the most part).

As Hispanics are now a significant part of the population, it will be interesting to see how red or blue we are in 20 years, when a lot more of them (plus their American-born children) are voting. I wonder if an anti-immigration Republican will be able to win a Senate seat.

And we may be at that point the only southern state where the Democrats held on so long in the State House and Governors mansion (god knows exactly how) that the demographic trends will have swung back their way.

Poor Erskine ran a terrible campaign. He is a very smart man, but a bit of a nerd and a wonk, and he looks the part. I don't know if Libby can hold off Kay Hagen this time around. I hope not.

The Democrats won my district for the first time in years by nominating an anti-immigration Democrat, Heath Schuler. But of course, right now the vast majority of NC's Hispanic population over the age of 18 is illegal. When their children reach their majority, look for the pandering to begin.