Battleground Michigan
Friday, September 19, 2008 at 07:21PM Of all the battleground states this election, Michigan may be the most critical to Barack Obama's ambitions.
The last Republican to win it was George H.W. Bush in 1988, though it's usually somewhat competitive. It's generally accepted that Obama has to hold the state in order to win the White House.
Most polls show a dead heat, and in a normal political year I would give a slight edge to Obama. But Michigan has some unusual circumstances which may tip it towards McCain.
For starters, their Democratic Governor is highly unpopular, and the McCain folks are running ads linking her to Obama. To complicate matters for Obama, the Mayor of Detroit is headed to jail, leaving the city's political machine in tatters. Obama is going to need a gigantic turnout in the cities if he hopes to keep the state. And keep in mind that Obama didn't step foot in the state during the primary because of the DNC ban, leaving him a lot of ground to make up.
The state's economy is a wreck, and McCain has been trying to work that to his advantage with his populist reform rhetoric. Both candidates are flooding the airwaives with ads, and I wouldn't be surprised if they spend more time in Michigan than any other state.
Reader Comments (1)
It will be a hard fought battle and critical win, no doubt. Must respectfully disagree with McCain gettng an edge. True, Gov. Granholm has done nothing to correct horrendous economy and replace sinking auto industry jobs - but, as a Michigan native, I see Obama resonating more with majority of voters. At this point, most care about a) jobs and b) keeping their homes from being foreclosed on. Simple as that. McCain will need to check his "I-forget-how-many-homes-I-own" image before hitting MI.
Conducting an unofficial poll with GM employees (and my mom - just for the helluva it). Stay tuned.