Obama has been spending significant amounts of time in Indiana during the campaign, something a Democratic nominee has not done in years. Obama has 32 field offices around the state and dozens of paid staffers. He spent 6 million dollars on television advertising in Indiana, leading up the May primary. Since June, Obama has spent 1.5 million on television advertising in Indiana. Obama has made 5 trips to Indiana since July and Biden is planning on visiting as well.
The McCain campaign does not seem to be concerned with Indiana switching over to a blue state. McCain has no field offices or full time paid staffers in the State. McCain has not even aired any ads to combat Obama’s ads. McCain is relying on Indiana’s historical conservative views.
I think McCain’s campaign needs to step it up in Indiana. He can’t just coast along to victory because history shows that does not always work. Hillary Clinton thought she had the Democratic nomination all wrapped up, but Obama proved her wrong. I don’t think McCain should underestimate Obama’s campaigning ability, especially with the poor economic condition and a Republican in the White House. However, I don’t think it will be that easy to turn Indiana to a Blue State. While Obama is popular Northwestern Indiana and other urban areas, he needs to focus on Democrats in rural areas and blue-collar workers, who were heavy supporters of Clinton. If McCain doesn’t act soon he could lose Indiana.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
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2 comments:
This could be a big loss to the Republican party. I'm amazed that Obama has done so well. His campaigning is somewhat revolutionary as no other democratic candidates have aired ads in Indiana for years. Obviously, his circumstances are a bit different now since he is a Senator in Illinois. Although recent polls have showed Obama in the lead here in Indiana, I find it hard to believe that we will vote much differently than before. But I guess there's always that chance.
Jared makes a very good point here. Obama has been quite unique among Democratic presidential nominees by airing ads, and even thinking that the state of Indiana is up for grabs in the general election. Having had the opportunity to attend one of his town hall meetings earlier this year, I was able to see first hand the kind of support that he has here in Indiana. This can probably be contributed to his strong grassroots campaign, and strong usage of the internet as a campaigning tool. In the end Indiana may still vote Republican, but I think it will be a much closer race than in past elections.
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