Arkansas Blog

A snip of the end of the article
>> Indeed, if Democrats are looking for their counterpart to the evangelical vote, they should turn to unmarried women: They are a majority of American women, they will soon be a majority of female voters, and when they vote, they vote overwhelmingly Democratic. But millions remain unregistered.

Instead, wrongheaded Democratic strategists continue to believe "NASCAR dads" or "soccer moms" hold the keys to a future majority. <<<

Although this is nothing new it is key.. Just what do you think would be enough to pull overworked, apathetic women voters into the process?
A few guesses....

Health care for kids
Women's health care including reproductive issues. (I see this as a successful dividing point for opposition unless health care for all is successfully pursued for everyone - men, women, and children.)

Earlier child care or education scheduled to allow working mothers to do their jobs.
Support for affordable collage
Worker rights such as equal pay for men and women.. and unions, safety in the workplace etc. etc.

But that wouldn't work in our system since only the money (political donations) of upper middle class soccer moms appears to be heard and the hard working (multiple jobs in most scenarios) women who have no time or information to vote with.
Public campaign finance and help with a genuine social agenda is a must.

And the systematic assault on minority and poor voters by the republicans like Karl Rove and Tim Griffin and their evangelical support machine have successfully oppressed the system... Many of these women know if even intuitively their vote will not be counted or heard even when counted.

Finally I wonder just how many women of all income levels end up voting against their own best interest due to low info or response to the fear factor which republicans and evangelicals do so well to all our detriment.

At least Howard Dean gets it.

In the 2004 election they say the single women voted for security, thinking Bush would keep them safer than Kerry.

I'd be cautious though. It could be the Republican misinformation machine putting out the info that says single women now hold the balance of power. Don't trust ANYTHING you hear between now and the next election.

The Republicans will do anything to win the election, and since they continue to get away with it election after election, they will only get more and more bold in what they're willing to do to win.

>They had expected split-ticket voters to account for about one-quarter of the electorate, but the figure was closer to 6 percent.<

If the great middle is gone and they must only swing a few per centages L or R why do elections continue to cost more and more?

At a MoveOn meet back in 04 I said that the unregistered voter could swing any election.
_