LAT: New Voters' Impact Debated (two polls show Kerry by dbl-digits)

[DeepModem Mom]

THE RACE FOR THE WHITE HOUSE
New Voters' Impact Debated
The swell in registration signals keen interest in the election, but how it will translate at the polls is a big question. Many are independents.

By James Rainey, Times Staff Writer


The registration of millions of new voters across the nation has raised the prospect of a surge of first-time voters on election day, but it remains hotly disputed whether their ballots will alter the outcome of the presidential election....

***

The political significance of the new registrations remains unclear, however, because some of the biggest growth has been in independent voters and because party loyalties remain unknown in two critical Midwest swing states — Ohio and Wisconsin.

Nationwide, at least two polls in the last week showed that newly registered voters favored Democratic presidential candidate John F. Kerry by double-digit margins. The Massachusetts senator holds an even greater lead, the polls found, among voters 29 and younger, many of whom will be voting for the first time.

Democratic strategists cautiously postulate that there exists an even greater Kerry vote "hidden" among young and new voters whom pollsters aren't reaching. But, in an interview, President Bush's campaign manager dismissed many of the opposition's registration gains as inflated....


http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/2004/la-na-newvoters24oct24,1,4690087.story?coll=la-home-headlines

[spooked]

1. Wow! They have got to be scared!

How do you keep all of these new voters from the polls??!!

[GinaMaria]

6. There's a common way to keep them from voting

Challenge residency. College students who register in the town where they attend school will be challenged that they only live there 8 months of the year. Does their driver's license show the college town as the address of residency? They may need to show proof of residency. The reverse happens in their home town.

[fugue]

2. Sure, our registration gains are inflated

The Republicans have destroyed the registration forms!

[MGKrebs]

3. I hope we can keep pushing this "double digit lead' concept.

If the mainstream polls are showing a virtual dead heat, I suspect that when Kerry wins in a landslide the GOP will claim some sort of voter fraud and try to nullify the results somehow. We can pre-empt this by circulating evidence that Kerry really is way ahead.




Don't let him out of the box:

[DeepModem Mom]

4. Just to be clear, that's a double digit lead among new voters only --

as I think you understand, but others might not. And you're right, it's helpful to keep these positive polls in the spotlight.

[liberalmuse]

5. We need a 6% lead...

or at least 5.5% lead in the most hotly contested BG states. That may be enough so the Bushies can't steal another one.

On edit: Nevermind. Dumb comment.

[AndyTiedye]

16. If Polls Show Tie or Bush* Ahead, they can ERASE a Kerry Landslide...

       "committed to delivering the electoral votes of Ohio to Bush"

[goforit]

7. Vote .....VOTE ......V O T E !!!!!

Humanity is at a precipice!!!

[radwriter0555]

8. 9 MORE DAYS!!! 9 MORE DAYS! 9 MORE DAYS!!!

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

[warrens]

9. Since I've been in Wisconsin every weekend for the past two months

I can tell you that those new voters are Dem by a WIDE margin. The repukes don't have a new base to recruit; they already vote in lockstep. The new voters are primarily college students and African-Americans. I will leave it to you to guess which way they will break on Nov. 2.

Our buses returning from Wisconsin last night pulled up to a light at Spago in downtown Chicago and Alan Keyes was standing on the corner with a few of his staff (probably his ENTIRE staff) trying to shake hands. Much hooting and chanting of O-BAM-A ensued. The look on his face was priceless. "Why me, Lord, oh why me?"

[DeepModem Mom]

10. That's a terrific post, warrens -- thanks for the post, and your work!

[w4rma]

11. Ignore the polls. They are a distraction and a waste of time that could be

spent on policy and on helping Dems retake control.

[MGKrebs]

15. Sorry.

While I try to not let the polls affect MY thinking, there is no denying that it DOES affect the thinking of some-perhaps many- others. If polls can be used to our advantage, then we would be foolish to disregard them.

And in this case, I think the importance is just to lay the groundwork for possible voter fraud challenges later. It's like putting something "on the record".

IF Dems win, and
IF Repubs claim fraud,
LESS people will give it credibility
IF it is clear that there was a good chance of Dems winning before the election.

[PROGRESSIVE1]

12. ..

[Dancing_Dave]

13. Music for America dot org

There's a site where a lot of these new voters hang out:
http://www.musicforamerica.org/
:yourock:

[d_b]

14. How sweet it is.

:)

[DeepModem Mom]

17. Hey, Sid -- welcome to DU!

[d_b]

19. Hi mom!

:-p

[xxqqqzme]

18. Many first time voters

I registered, checked 'decline to state' but were supporting Kerry. if the Democratic Party would return to its base, many new voters would embrace the Democratic Party, As long as Dems continue pandering 2 the right, these new voters have no political home.