Seasoned political analyst Charlie Cook, author of the Cook Report, has offered some details regarding electoral and demographic shifts that paint a not-so-rosy picture for Democrats in the 2016 cycle and beyond.
Contrary to what many in the mainstream media have alleged concerning the uphill battle facing the Republican Party, Cook points to the realignment in the country between urban and rural areas that presents a rather difficult hurdle for Democrats. Specifically, he details
“Increasingly, Democratic strength is concentrated primarily in urban areas and college towns, among minorities, and in narrow bands along the West Coast (but only the first 50-100 miles from the beaches) and the East Coast (but only from New York City northward). The South and the Border South, as well as small-town and rural America, are rapidly becoming no-fly zones for Democrats. Few Democrats represent small-town and rural areas, and the party is find it increasingly difficult to attract noncollege-educated white voters.”
Quoting the Gallup organization, Cook continues, “These data underscore the magnitude of the Democratic Party’s problem with working-class whites, among whom Obama lost in the 2012 presidential election, and among whom Democratic House candidates lost in the 2014 U.S. House voting by 30 points.”
