# "Battleground States" **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [November 7, 2012, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battleground-states/640230 "2012-11-07T16:08:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 2\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battleground-states/640230/41 "2012-11-08T03:48:35Z")
I’m part of the reason Texas gained 4 electoral votes. I moved from Oregon, a safe blue state. Now, if only more of you Democrats would move down here we might put this state in play! ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battleground-states/640230/42 "2012-11-09T01:58:53Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > They’ll have to find someone significantly more popular with young voters, gays, Latinos, black voters, women, or some other mix of groups they have not done well with in the last couple of elections. And that could happen, but it would require them to make some real changes instead of doubling down on being super-conservative again. I disagree. What if the Democrats run someone who is fairly UNpopular, like Dukakis or, bless him, Mondale? What if the Republicans were to run someone fairly popular among the right and moderate voters, like Reagan? In each case, the popularity among those demographic groups wouldn’t be enough to preclude wins for the Republicans in some or all of the 19 states in question, just as it wasn’t in 1984 or 1988. The only reason things have been consistently close is because the demographics are the way they are, and the Republicans have been running some pretty poor candidates. Might be a very different story if they actually select someone people will get excited about, like Jeb Bush. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battleground-states/640230.md?page=2)