It has a decent number of electoral votes and it closely mirrors the partisan makeup of the country, so that when the country is close Ohio will be close.
Ah, the partisan makeup, gotcha. Always wondered; thanks 
It’s because we’re swingers, baby.
Can I just say what an enormous debt of gratitude all of us owe to the swing states for taking the hits for us? I’m in a Democratic stronghold and I still heard too many political ads. I think my brain would have melted if I lived in Ohio or Florida.
Mass media must have been unwatchable in those states for the past three months.
Everyone loves the Bengals.
Agreed. Minnesota was never going to go for Romney in any circumstances, but even here watching live TV was a nightmare. Thank all that is holy for DVRs.
Article about that very question, by a native Ohioan.
There’s still something niggling me about the Ohio thing, though.
It isn’t as if once Ohio votes, the election is over.
And nobody goes ‘Oh, Ohio’s gonna vote for Romney? Ok, well then I guess I’d better follow suit!’
And pandering to Ohioans in particular doesn’t make any sense, since, again, other states have more of an actual effect on the total. Sure, it’s a microcosm, but in that case you might as well just pander to the country as a whole. Or is this holistic pandering?
So is it just a bellweather, and easy place to dump all the campaign money? Do other states watch Ohio’s campaign antics more than their own?
I still really do not get it.
This is the first I’ve ever heard about this Ohio thing.
Yes. I live in Massachusetts and it almost always votes for the Democratic candidate in elections so presidential campaign news stories specific to this state are boring. Even though Romney lives here and was governor here, there was never a chance that he would win Massachusetts so we just followed coverage of the swing states and Ohio happened to be the most important of those this time around. Florida has been in that position before.
It is a result of the electoral college system and it is true for most states including the biggest ones like California, Texas, and New York. Those states and their electoral college votes are already committed for all intents and purposes so only a few states make a meaningful difference to the outcome. All the states have a ‘say’ but the country is divided enough that you can count most of the results accurately well before election day leaving only a few interesting ones.
Better yet, fill the time with actual beer!
OOOH!! Ok, now I understand the swing state competition; and Ohio is obviously the biggest, swingingest state. Doh. /facepalm Thanks!
The other thing about Ohio, it isn’t just that it’s a swing state today, but that it has been one pretty much forever. Other states come and go. Virginia is swingy now but for a long time was safely Republican. Missouri has gone the opposite way. But Ohio is always there. So if you ask me right now, what will be the swing states in 2024, my first answer would be . . . probably Ohio.
It’s me. Sorry, can’t help it.
[QUOTE=Jragon]
Well, they do, but that guy on the Oatmeal box is just so bland and inoffensive.
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:Golf clap: You owe me a cup of coffee and a monitor.
Something equally as stupid will come to replace it.
I used to play the football ad drinking game, where every time I saw a beer commercial I drank a beer. But by the evening game, I’d be drunk enough to start taking one of whatever product the commercial was selling and buying ten or fifteen pickup trucks each week was getting really expensive.
I propose letting only Ohioans vote in national elections. Sure would make them easier to endure. (National elections I mean, not Ohioans.)
It sure seems like we’d get the same result. The Buckeye Staters outdid themselves this time:
National Percentages: Obama 50.4, Romeny 48.0, Johnson 1.0, Stein 0.3, others 0.3.
Ohio Percentages: Obama 50.1, Romney 48.2, Johnson 0.9, Stein 0.3, others 0.4.
You don’t get much closer to a national microcosm than that.