You’ve probably seen some version of this data in numerical form. But it’s still eye-popping in a graph …
The graph on the left charts party identification over the last six years. Democrats held steady, then surged in the 2008 campaign and finally came down off those highs after the election. Republicans have been steadily down — from just under 1/3 or the electorate in 2004 to just under a quarter now.
The graph to the right shows just this year. The lines look fairly similar — but much less so when you see them in the context of the larger trend. That is, the Dems were coming off an extremely high 39% party affiliation and a build up into the election. For Republicans it’s just a continuation of the same 5 year trend.
Just as noticeable — independent affiliation is the biggest ‘winner’. But for the moment at least, actual elections are zero sum games between the two major political parties. The Democratic ‘brand’ (we’ve got to understanding the world in something beside marketing terms) is holding up nicely. The GOP brand remains in steep decline.
Who can tell me the names of some good, up-and-coming political comics in New York City?
We have some more tentatively encouraging news emerging about the Swine Flu virus.
Yesterday, we noted that the Mexican government had substantially revised downward the number of deaths attributed to the Swine Flu, from 159 to 84, after tests had ruled out many of the suspected cases.
Now comes word from the Times that Mexican officials have now reported that of the 908 suspected cases that have now been tested, only 397 turned out to have suffered from the Swine Flu.
Finally, there appears to be some clinical evidence suggesting that people over 60 may have some immunity to the virus.
The GOP is already gearing up to make political hay out of the Supreme Court vacancy — and conservative groups are already preparing to raise some money. That and other political news in today’s TPMDC Saturday Roundup.
It used to be that when you saw two men and one woman under a chuppah, everyone’s assigned role was clear. Not any more.
Mitt Romney: “We are the party of the revolutionaries, they [Democrats] are the party of the monarchists.”