'Wal-Mart Mom' Voters Swing, Will Be Crucial

Shift of working white women to GOP spells trouble for Obama

By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff

Posted Sep 10, 2008 8:40 AM CDT

(Newser) – Polls clearly show the white women's vote swinging away from Barack Obama and it's a particular group the candidate needs to worry about most, Karen Tumulty writes in Time. Soccer moms comprised the key swing group in 1996, and "security moms" did last election, Tumulty notes. This time, it's the "Wal-Mart moms"—or grandmas—who could win it, she adds.

The "Wal-Mart moms" are in their 40s or 50s and financially squeezed by the needs of both aging parents and college-age kids. The demographic tends to be less educated and more "racially sensitive," pollsters note. John McCain has grabbed their attention with his choice of Sarah Palin, but analysts aren't sure if that will last. This group could be wooed by a Democrat, but Obama will need to do a better job of selling himself to them, Tumulty concludes.

[Images (4)]

[Quotes (2)]

Barack Obama shops for fruit with Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., at the Columbia Market House in Columbia, Pa., last week. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Sarah Palin signs autographs for an overflow crowd of supporters after a campaign rally in Lancaster, Pa., yesterday. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia)

Women voters in their 40s and 50s could prove to be the key swing group this election. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola, File)

A customer checks out at a Wal-Mart Store in Arkansas this summer (AP Photo/April L. Brown, file)

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White women are always a key demographic in close races. The ones who matter most, however, are not necessarily the same in each presidential election. - Karen Tumulty

They are conflicted on Obama. They'd like to vote for a Democrat, but they're not sure Obama is the one. - Democratic pollster Geoff Garin on the 'Wal-Mart moms.'

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'Wal-Mart Mom' Voters Swing, Will Be Crucial