The power of Purple

Whether you are Red, Blue or Purple (Independent), a shortlist of topics remain the centerpieces of discussion in 2022: Foreign policy, domestic policy, inflation, supply chain, COVID, crime and voting.

For anyone who doesn't like the trajectory of any of these topics and is a citizen and of voting age, look in the mirror. Any voting regrets?

In an era of second-guessers/fact checkers, let me offer a few for thought as we look back at past 5+ years. Some 17 million more people voted in the 2020 presidential election. Think about that in the context of supposed voter "suppression." Some 73% of all voting age citizens were registered to vote, 2% higher than 2016. Alternative voting methods were deployed: early, extended and mail in. Voter turnout for all race groups was higher, the largest increase with non-Hispanic Asian citizens of voting age at 10%. Whites had 5%, Hispanics had 6% and Blacks had 3%.

For U.S. citizens of voting age, it is not hard to vote. If you want to vote, you do. As for the results of all this voting and our current color coding, some unprecedented events occurred in 2020. The Red party won 95% (18/19) of previously considered "bellwether" counties that have accurately picked our recent presidents, until now. The Red party won all 27 "tossup" House contests. The Red party got 11 million more votes than in 2016. Minorities voted Red at the highest percentage ever.

In contrast, the Blue party lost 2,547 counties and won 509, according to Brookings institute.

The Blue party had 81 million votes vs. the Red party's 74 million. Winning large counties matters a lot.

The population of Purple voters who don't identify with either major party has trended upward in the past two decades and accounted for 36% of the potential electorate in 2020, according to Gallup. They accounted for 26% of the ballots, according to Edison Research.

A new poll indicates that Purple voters would prefer, by an 18 percentage-point margin, that Republicans regain control of Congress in next year's midterm elections.

The poll by John Zogby Strategies found that 45% of Purple voters prefer the Red party in charge of the House and Senate, compared to 27% who want Blue party to keep their majority. The remaining 28% said they were undecided.

The 2022 midterms will reflect the power of Purple.

Chris Kosikowski

Grayslake