Thursday, October 23, 2008
A Swingtown Voter?
The Invisible Suburb is located in a swing state, but it often seems that the sole benefit of this status is an increased number of television advertisements explaining how Candidate X is unpatriotic and Candidate Y represents change in which all of us should believe. That's not quite true...we also receive more than our fair share of mailings, political rallies, and 24-hour news cycle coverage.
But none of this directly affects me. After all, people in my age bracket would be sought out by the voter registration drives regardless of how red, blue, or purple my state might be. And in today's electronic age, the advertisements in question would be distributed across state lines thanks to the power of the blogosphere.
So, on the whole, I assumed that I would not be a target of the various campaigns...at least until last night, when I received a cell phone call from an Obama volunteer in New York asking if I had registered to vote (Yes!), if I was strongly committed to a candidate (Yes!), and if I was interested in volunteering in the days leading up to the election (Not particularly, but I know someone if I change my mind...!)
Yes, ladies and gentlemen. I am that highly sought after swing voter. The Democrats may have contacted me, but I'm sure the Republicans also care which way my political weathervane is pointing. My political capital possesses more weight than my colleagues in purely blue or red states. Fear my authority, America, for your political fate is in my hands and those of my fellow swing state voters.
Three cheers for the electoral college!
The Invisible Suburb is located in a swing state, but it often seems that the sole benefit of this status is an increased number of television advertisements explaining how Candidate X is unpatriotic and Candidate Y represents change in which all of us should believe. That's not quite true...we also receive more than our fair share of mailings, political rallies, and 24-hour news cycle coverage.
But none of this directly affects me. After all, people in my age bracket would be sought out by the voter registration drives regardless of how red, blue, or purple my state might be. And in today's electronic age, the advertisements in question would be distributed across state lines thanks to the power of the blogosphere.
So, on the whole, I assumed that I would not be a target of the various campaigns...at least until last night, when I received a cell phone call from an Obama volunteer in New York asking if I had registered to vote (Yes!), if I was strongly committed to a candidate (Yes!), and if I was interested in volunteering in the days leading up to the election (Not particularly, but I know someone if I change my mind...!)
Yes, ladies and gentlemen. I am that highly sought after swing voter. The Democrats may have contacted me, but I'm sure the Republicans also care which way my political weathervane is pointing. My political capital possesses more weight than my colleagues in purely blue or red states. Fear my authority, America, for your political fate is in my hands and those of my fellow swing state voters.
Three cheers for the electoral college!
Comments:
Did you ever think it's a little weird that voter registration drives are run by private or partisan organizations? Seems kinda weird to me.
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