The shifting sands of democracy

I just wish we could blog press photographs as easily as text. There’s a priceless photo on the front of the FT this morning showing Bill Clinton and George Bush sitting in the Arkansas rain for the opening of the Clinton Library. The paper’s leader may hold some lessons for the two defeated parties in Northern Ireland’s last Assembly election, on the protean nature of today’s shifting constituencies:”Mr Kerry did mobilise the base. But it was not enough. The Democrats need to break out of their geographical bases in the old Union states of the north east and the west coast and appeal to a culturally conservative, churchgoing hinterland. A dwindling number of individual Democrats still do. But the party does not. Nor can the Democrats assume that demographics will come to their rescue. The shift in population towards the sunny south helps Republicans, while Republicans can contend for the growing Hispanic vote”.

The days of lent votes are long over…

Mick Fealty

Mick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a regular guest and speaking events across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Twitter: @MickFealty