Nation

CAMPAIGN 2012

Fall brawl is all about these 10 battleground states

 

From now until Nov. 6, it’s all about Florida, Ohio and eight other deeply divided battlegrounds. Here’s how they stack up.

Similar stories:

McClatchy News Service

William Douglas Washington Bureau

NORTH CAROLINA (15 electoral votes)

Republicans were so certain of carrying the Tar Heel State last time that South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham boasted: “I’ll beat Michael Phelps in swimming before Barack Obama wins North Carolina.”

After Obama improbably carried North Carolina in 2008, Republicans are making no such boasts this time. This summer, the state has endured a $50 million advertising barrage, with Romney and his allies outspending Obama by more than two to one.

So far, the ad war has barely moved the polls, with most showing the race within the margin of error. But Democrats acknowledge they face an uphill task in a state with the fifth highest unemployment rate in the country.

Obama is counting on a massive grass-roots effort and a boost from the convention that concluded Thursday in Charlotte, and from an influx of new residents from more Democratic-leaning parts of the country.

Rob Christensen The News & Observer of Raleigh, N.C.

VIRGINIA (13 electoral votes)

Virginia was long regarded as a conservative Southern state. But in 2008, Obama became the first Democratic candidate to carry the commonwealth in 44 years after putting together the broadest state political organization in modern times.

Republicans are fighting hard to get the state back, and Virginia is now among the most volatile of the swing states.

Democrats have made inroads in northern Virginia, where the population has boomed in recent years, particularly with minorities and younger voters. Republicans have electoral strength in the Shenandoah Valley and rural south and southwestern Virginia.

The key battleground areas are the outer suburbs of Washington, including Prince William and Loudoun counties; Hampton Roads, the sprawling region in southeastern Virginia and home to a large number of veterans, college students and African-Americans; and suburban Richmond.

Anita Kumar Washington Bureau

NEVADA (6 electoral votes)

Four years after Obama won Nevada by more than 12 percentage points, this recession-weary state — perhaps more than any other — tests his argument that the economy has improved on his watch.

Foreclosures are rampant and the unemployment rate still hovers around 12 percent, highest in the nation. The Republican Party, outnumbered by more than 100,000 active voters in 2008, has reduced the Democratic Party’s advantage to fewer than 60,000 active voters this year.

Yet a strong following for Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, evident at the Republican National Convention, and before that at a disorderly state convention, has forced Romney to work around the state party.

The state’s growing Latino population and large Mormon population could factor heavily in the outcome, likely helping Obama and Romney, respectively. David Siders The Sacramento Bee

NEW HAMPSHIRE (4 electoral votes)

Obama won the state soundly in 2008. Romney, who has a summer home in the state and was governor of neighboring Massachusetts, is hoping for a hometown edge.

The Granite State’s major claim to political fame stems from its first-in-the-nation presidential primary, which provides every candidate with a roadmap of the state’s political landscape. But it’s also a tempting prize in the general election, with an electorate so closely divided that it’s almost always up for grabs.

Email: dlightman@mcclatchydc.com; Twitter: @lightmandavid

Read more Nation stories from the Miami Herald

  •  

This undated photo released by the Department of Justice shows Daniel Brown. Authorities in Ohio have arrested three people, including Brown, on charges of enslaving a mentally disabled young mother and her daughter over a two-year period. Federal agents and Ashland police said Tuesday, June 18, 2013 the trio forced the woman to do housework, threatened her and the girl with violence and fed their pets better than the victims.

    Ohio woman accuses 3 of holding her captive

    A woman told authorities she was held captive for more than a year by three people who forced her to do housework, raided her bank account and menaced her with snakes and pit bulls.

  •  

General Keith Alexander, director of the National Security Agency, appears before the House Select Intelligence Committee in Washington D.C.

    NSA chief: Spying stopped 50 terrorist ‘events’

    The director of the National Security Agency testified Tuesday that the government’s massive surveillance program helped thwart more than 50 terrorist “events” worldwide since Sept. 11, 2001, including a planned bombing of the New York Stock Exchange that involved a Kansas City man.

  •  

Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., arrives on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, June 18, 2013, at House Judiciary Committee hearing to discuss the Strengthen and Fortify Enforcement Act.  Republicans in the House of Representatives on Tuesday make their most concerted effort of the year to change U.S. abortion law with legislation that would ban almost all abortions after a fetus reaches the age of 20 weeks.

    House passes far-reaching anti-abortion bill

    The Republican-led House on Tuesday passed a far-reaching anti-abortion bill that conservatives saw as a milestone in their 40-year campaign against legalized abortion and Democrats characterized as yet another example of a GOP war on women.

Miami Herald

Join the
Discussion

The Miami Herald is pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news. Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere on the site or in the newspaper. We encourage lively, open debate on the issues of the day, and ask that you refrain from profanity, hate speech, personal comments and remarks that are off point. Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.

The Miami Herald uses Facebook's commenting system. You need to log in with a Facebook account in order to comment. If you have questions about commenting with your Facebook account, click here.

Have a news tip? You can send it anonymously. Click here to send us your tip - or - consider joining the Public Insight Network and become a source for The Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald.

Hide Comments

This affects comments on all stories.

Cancel OK

  • Videos

  • Quick Job Search

Enter Keyword(s) Enter City Select a State Select a Category