2016 Postmortem
Showing Original Post only (View all)Hillary has only regional appeal and her model is dependent on low turnout. She can't fix that. [View all]
Hillary is winning in the Dixiecrat states. These 13 states compose one of the most anti-Progressive regions in the United States (the Deep South is least supportive of reproductive health liberties, collective bargaining rights, GLBT equality, etc.). Hillary has so far put together a clean sweep of these states because the Clintons rose to power in the Deep South, which is ideologically inclined against the Progressive message of Sanders.
Assume Clinton is insurmountably preferred over Sanders in the 13 states of the Deep South.
Even if Hillary is liked in the Deep South, why is Clinton performing so poorly outside of the Deep South?
This is a problem we need to address before we choose a nominee.
Look at the data behind Sanders' 8 big wins versus Clinton's 3 narrow wins outside the Deep South:
Iowa - Clinton won by 0.3% in a dirty, close race (closest in Iowa's history)
New Hampshire - Sanders won by a wide 22.4% margin
Nevada - Clinton won by 5.3% in a narrower win than her win over Obama in 2008
Colorado - Sanders won by a wide 18.5% margin
Massachusetts - Clinton won dirty by a very narrow 1.4% margin
Minnesota - Sanders won by a wide 23.2% margin
Oklahoma - Sanders won by a wide 10.4% margin
Vermont - Sanders won by a wide 72.5% margin
Kansas - Sanders won by a wide 35.4% margin
Nebraska - Sanders won by a wide 14.2% margin
Maine - Sanders won by a wide 28.8% margin
In a year when the Republican race is setting turnout records, all of Hillary's wins have come in states where Democratic turnout is way down.
In contrast, Sanders has won setting turnout records in Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska (which had a huge turnout despite switching from a primary in 2008 to a caucus in 2016), and Maine.
How many states does Hillary have to lose outside of the Deep South and how many races she can win with anemic turnout before we can have an adult discussion about the implications of these results for her electability prospects?