# The "make Democrats leave swing states and migrate to blue ones" strategy for capturing swing states
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572
**Category:** Politics & Elections
**Created:** [March 2, 2023, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572 "2023-03-02T01:04:49Z")
**Posts on this page:** 16
**Page:** 4
### Author:  [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)
#### Post date: [March 3, 2023, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/61 "2023-03-03T17:43:55Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#):
>
> But do you agree that there would be a lot of conservatives who do so, and even more who threaten to do so? I hear a whole lot of one issue voters on the subject, who don’t care about any policies at all other than guns and will vote for Republicans, no matter their disagreements with other policies, as long as any Democrat even thinks about any sort of gun control measure. And while I agree that it is silly, I can’t imagine that sort of person continuing to live in a state that has banned guns.
You’re absolutely right that lots of people would move because of a gun ban. But I feel like that’s a wholly political move, while moving out of somewhere because of some sort of imminent threat to your well-being or essential legal status is something else entirely.
Moving for guns is exactly what I’d count as “moving to be around people who are politically just like you”, while moving because you’re LGBTQ and feel threatened is a very different situation. It’s the difference between moving somewhere because you want to BE THERE, versus moving because you don’t want to BE HERE.
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### Author:  [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)
#### Post date: [March 3, 2023, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/62 "2023-03-03T18:18:34Z")
> [@fordgt100](#):
>
> I’m not sure where you got that information. The polls that we used, not the public polls, were way off. Everyone I talked to thought Trump would be thumped.
Private polling done by individuals and not done by those with a public track record are neither relevant nor what anyone else is talking about. What’s being discussed are **real** polls.
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### Author:  [@Akaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Akaj)
#### Post date: [March 3, 2023, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/63 "2023-03-03T19:11:03Z")
> [@bump](#):
>
> You’re absolutely right that lots of people would move because of a gun ban. But I feel like that’s a wholly political move, while moving out of somewhere because of some sort of imminent threat to your well-being or essential legal status is something else entirely.
Not sure I agree. Lots of people who own guns believe they’re essential for defense of their homes, cars, businesses, families, selves, etc. So a gun ban would feel like an imminent threat to their well-being.
Note: I think gun owners _massively_ overestimate the threats against which they own guns. But their desire to live in a place where guns are permitted is no more “political” than a trans person wanting to live where LGBTQ people are accepted.
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### Author:  [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)
#### Post date: [March 3, 2023, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/64 "2023-03-03T19:36:17Z")
Fair enough, I suppose I’m looking at it from the non-paranoid gun owner perspective. I don’t feel threatened in my daily life at all, and the guns I have are ones I inherited and/or were purchased for sporting purposes like hunting or target shooting.
I’d be annoyed if I had to give them up, and I’d be PISSED if I wasn’t compensated fairly for them. But it wouldn’t be the sort of thing that would make me move to keep them.
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### Author:  [@Akaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Akaj)
#### Post date: [March 3, 2023, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/65 "2023-03-03T20:38:45Z")
> [@bump](#):
>
> I suppose I’m looking at it from the non-paranoid gun owner perspective. I don’t feel threatened in my daily life at all …
As opposed to some ex-friends of mine who now live in Arizona, where they carry full-time in public because “we’re right next to Mexico.” It’s about 300 miles to the border, but …
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### Author:  [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)
#### Post date: [March 3, 2023, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/66 "2023-03-03T23:02:55Z")
> [@bump](#):
>
> Fair enough. All I was saying is that most people moving here seem to be doing so because of economic reasons, not because they’re disgusted with California politics and want out. And I’d go so far as to say that the lack of a state income tax is an economic reason more than a political one.
I agree. I think of a lack of state income tax being a political decision with economic consequences, but that’s more of a disagreement of definitions than about what’s actually going on.
I do disagree with the premise of the OP, meaning I don’t think a lot of Democratic voters are leaving Florida and Texas. In the most recent reapportionment, Texas and Florida both gained seats while New York and California both lost. The movement is from blue to red states, even among groups that traditionally vote Democratic. And yes, it’s mostly economic (although IMHO those economic causes are due to political decisions).
Here’s an article about this very issue, discussing why Black people are moving from blue states to red rates.
> **[Democrats: Why in the Hell Are Black People Moving to Red States?](https://www.theroot.com/why-are-black-people-flocking-to-red-states-1850185297?utm_source=YPL)**
>
> In a great reverse Black migration, the top four states for Black people are Texas, Georgia, North Carolina and Florida
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### Author:  [@EastUmpqua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EastUmpqua)
#### Post date: [March 4, 2023, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/67 "2023-03-04T21:22:00Z")
> [@Ann\_Hedonia](#):
>
> Economics doesn’t necessarily mean just taxes. If you are a working professional in a large city with a high cost of living, you are probably receiving an income commensurate with the cost of living — but once you are no longer working, it sometimes makes sense to relocate to an area with a lower cost of living.
I think this Forbes article mostly agrees with you, but some of California’s economic problems are related to political ideology. Good or bad.
> **[Moving From California To Texas: Costs And Benefits Guide](https://www.forbes.com/home-improvement/moving-services/moving-to-texas-from-california/)**
>
> Get expert advice on improvements to your home, including design tips, how much you'd expect to pay for a pro and what to ask when hiring experts.
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### Author:  [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)
#### Post date: [March 4, 2023, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/68 "2023-03-04T21:59:27Z")
> [@Airbeck](#):
>
> I paid attention to 538 almost every day leading up to the 2016 election and I don’t remember ever seeing Trump’s odds to win in their projections as less than about 30%. It always looked likely that Clinton would win, but never overwhelming. My constant anxiety at the time is my proof.
And that projection meant that in one universe out of three, Trump wins.
Guess what - we were in that one universe.
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### Author:  [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)
#### Post date: [March 5, 2023, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/69 "2023-03-05T20:45:46Z")
I wanna live in one of the other two.
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### Author:  [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)
#### Post date: [March 6, 2023, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/70 "2023-03-06T00:41:00Z")
You’ll have to talk to one of the Flashes to see if they can get you to Earth-Two.
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### Author:  [@fordgt100](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fordgt100)
#### Post date: [March 6, 2023, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/71 "2023-03-06T04:43:16Z")
The people who live in Florida are not going to move to California under almost any circumstance. The other way around is true too. Whether it be politics, housing, weather or culture, they don’t cross over at all.
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### Author:  [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)
#### Post date: [March 10, 2023, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/72 "2023-03-10T20:20:17Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#):
>
> You’ll have to talk to one of the Flashes to see if they can get you to Earth-Two.
How do we know we’re not Earth-Two? Or Earth-Three? Or Earth-Whatever?
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### Author:  [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)
#### Post date: [March 11, 2023, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/73 "2023-03-11T01:20:16Z")
The one where all the other superheroes are fictional is home base-_Earth Prime_.
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### Author:  [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)
#### Post date: [March 11, 2023, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/74 "2023-03-11T01:40:11Z")
We had Phoenix Jones as a real superhero, so we’re not Earth Prime.
We’re just one of those lame triple digit ones nobody cares about. 😥
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### Author:  [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)
#### Post date: [March 11, 2023, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/75 "2023-03-11T11:04:16Z")
My family is in the Chicago area. Immediate family is pretty much straight-ticket Democratic voters. One of my sisters is moving to Arizona, another sister is moving to Florida, and my brother is also moving to Florida. I guess some people love warm weather more than they hate living under Republican leadership.
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### Author:  [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)
#### Post date: [March 22, 2023, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-make-democrats-leave-swing-states-and-migrate-to-blue-ones-strategy-for-capturing-swing-states/980572/76 "2023-03-22T01:43:58Z")
> [@Atamasama](#):
>
> We had Phoenix Jones as a real superhero, so we’re not Earth Prime.
>
> We’re just one of those lame triple digit ones nobody cares about. 😥
616 if I recall correctly. Wait, that’s wrong too. Must be a different triple digit. Maybe even one of those more boring ones in the 4 or 5 digits.
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