TML
Junior Chimp
Posts: 5,509
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« on: May 02, 2024, 01:12:39 AM » |
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Contrary to popular belief, the most strongly Republican areas of NC are not the rural areas (in fact, some rural areas are majority nonwhite and those areas routinely give Democrats high vote shares), but so-called "Countrypolitan" counties - which are counties on the outskirts of major metro areas across the state. These places are mostly whiter and less educated than the statewide average, which explains why they routinely give Republican candidates high vote shares. For example, in 2020 Biden won Mecklenburg County (home to Charlotte) by 35 points, but he combined to lose the other counties in the Charlotte metro area by double digits, so he only won the entire Charlotte metro area by about 4 points.
Now, because of the demographic characteristics of these "Countrypolitan" counties, it is unlikely that most of them would flip anytime soon, but given how close NC statewide elections have tended to be, Democrats could tilt the state in their favor simply by slightly reducing their losing margins in these places. A good way to accomplish this is to focus on the most D-leaning areas in these places (i.e. the most populated urban areas and/or places with colleges) and boost turnout in these places.
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