With Race Unfinished, Attention Turns to Wyoming

[IDemo]

“We have a core of Democrats,” said Ms. Karpan, the former secretary of state, “who are Democrats not for convenience or any social advantage; they’re Democrats by conviction. We know what it’s like to be beaten down.”

CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Being a Democrat in this state means that one’s status in political life is rarely in question and rarely that good. Republicans have a more than two-to-one edge in voter registration — or even 10 to 1 in some counties — and the Democrats, who are gearing up for their presidential caucuses on Saturday, usually get the leftovers.

Back in 1921, for example, when there was one lonely Democrat in the Wyoming House of Representatives, he would routinely announce where his caucus — of one — would meet, in case anyone else was interested. First the telephone booth, he would say, then the men’s room, then the bar on the corner.

“I think dilution would be the proper term,” said Dr. John Millin, an ophthalmologist who serves as the state Democratic Party chairman.

But this time, Democrats here say, it feels different. In contrast to all the dismally attended, demoralized Democratic presidential caucuses of past years, the outnumbered Democrats of Wyoming might actually have something to roar about.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/07/us/politics/07wyoming.html