01/11/2004 4:24:08 pm
Av Ever Tighter Race. As the Presidential race enters its final hours, national polls show Bush in the lead. But polls in the swing states show Kerry gaining, not least in Florida - the most important one. An intersting fact might be that the demographic changes have benefited the Republicans. In 2000, Bush won with 271 to 266 electoral votes. If he would win the same states this time, the figures would be 278-259, since the states where he won have had an increased population and more seats in Congress. All efforts are put into winning the swing states. Democrats claim to have 90 000 activists only in Pennsylvania, and Republicans have 70 000. And since it is a very tied race, there are also 10 000 lawyers standing prepared to go to states that turn out very even, in order to question the results. When I yesterday met the former editor-in-chief of Dagens Nyheter, Hans Bergstrom, he pointed out a few things. First that the so-called soccer moms that traditionally vote Democrat, have become security moms that lean towards Bush. He also pointed out that 60 per cent of Americans have pension savings in the stock exchange, this is the "investor class". So increased capital taxes - claiming only to hit big business - would hurt most people. These people worry about the Kerry tax increases. It is now also clearly noticable that the campaigns are ending; the New York Times, today has heroic portraits of the two candidates in their struggle. A tired but fighting John Kerry seemingly saying more things wrong than Bush ever has (such as greeting the University of Wisconsin in Iowa) and a joking but also tired Bush flying to three states a day.