some questions about basic politics

Published on June 8, 2004 By MythicalMino In Politics

Ok, I enjoy reading and watching what is going on politically. But there are many things I do not know or understand. These are, I am sure, very basic things, but things I do not understand.

For one, what determines a "Battleground State" during the election?

(and, while I am at it, what determines that in-game?)

As for political strategy, what causes a candidate to focus on a particular state, and basically "give" another state to his political opponent?

(again, also, how do you determine this in-game?)

Thanks

Comments

MythicalMino

on Jun 08, 2004

does anyone know? Please?

(heh, yeah, begging)

vincible

on Jun 08, 2004

A "battleground state" is a state which both major candidates have a chance of winning. (Most states are Republican-dominated or Democrat-dominated.) The candidates spend almost all of their time and money in battleground states.

There's no point in campaigning in solidly Republican or solidly Democratic states, because the electoral college system is "winner take all." So campaigning in, say, California is a waste of time--if Bush campaigned there vigorously, he might reduce Kerry's margin of victory there from 20 points to 10, but Kerry still would get all of the electoral votes.

What determines how Democratic or Republican a state is depends on a lot of things. The biggest factor is how urban the state is (rural=Republican, urban=Democrat, in general). Also important is the racial breakdown (minorities tend to be Democratic, with some exceptions). But there are lots and lots of other factors involved. How all this works in the game I'm not entirely sure.

MythicalMino

on Jun 08, 2004

ok, that explains alot....thanks

Welcome Guest! Please take the time to register with us.
There are many great features available to you once you register, including:

Richer content, access to many features that are disabled for guests like commenting on the forums.
Access to a great community, with a massive database of many, many areas of interest.
Access to contests & subscription offers like exclusive emails.
It's simple, and FREE!