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From Rockies, Dems Can See Their Future

Party can mine the West's demographic, ideological shifts

By Harry Kimball, Newser Staff

Posted Aug 28, 2008 7:06 AM CDT

(Newser) – The past few years have shown a surprising trend toward a Democratic preference in the Mountain West, but that doesn’t mean voters are embracing the party line, Ryan Lizza writes in the New Yorker. Governors like Colorado’s Bill Ritter—who gained office on a coalition more of new industries and freethinkers than labor and minorities—have been changing what it means to be Democratic.

Barack Obama’s campaign could learn a few things as it seeks to mine the West. Ritter is a pro-business, pro-green-tech centrist, as likely to rebuff Democrats as Republicans. While lack of political loyalty might be a death knell in the entrenched East, in relatively young “Colorado, it’s a badge of honor,” Ritter said. In the West, one watcher said, “it’s the end of the New Deal coalition.”

[Images (4)]

[Quotes (1)]

"He's in the Colorado mold," former Democratic senator Gary Hart says of Gov. Bill Ritter. "He's smart but he's not uppity. He's a down-to-earth, everyday guy, which is very important out here." (AP Photo)

Michelle Obama hugs Gov. Bill Ritter, D-Colo. (AP Photo)

The Denver 2008 Convention Host Committee. (AP Photo)

Downtown Denver. (AP Photo)

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Over time, the political process may change the very outlook of a party, forcing it to become more attuned to the peculiar issues and coalitions of new voters. - Ryan Lizza, the New Yorker

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From Rockies, Dems Can See Their Future