Wrong Again....Thank God

A week before the election I went on the record predicting that Harris would win.  I sighted six reasons for that prediction:

_1. The polls were undercounting younger voters who were likely to vote Democrat.  So, Trump wasn’t as close to Harris as the polls predicted.

_2. The abortion issue would be a major factor in this election and the majority of women voters were against Trump.

_3. The mainstream media’s constant assault on Trump and championing Harris was tilting the scales in the Democrats’ favor.

_4. On balance Democrats have performed somewhat better in Presidential elections than Republicans since 1992.  In a close race against a polarizing candidate like Trump, the Democrats would likely win.

_5. The Red Wave that was predicted in 2022 did not happen, largely due to a rejection of Trump-backed candidates.

_6. The Democrats know how to get out their voters in the places where it matters the most.  The Republicans just didn’t have as good of a “ground game” as the Democrats.

Thankfully, I was wrong; and it wasn’t even close.  So, what happened?

_More young people voted for Trump than expected. The majority still went for Harris, but not to the degree expected.  In particular, a lot of younger men voted for Trump.

_The abortion issue was not a match for the economy and immigration issues.  Harris still got a lot of votes from women and in particular Pro-Choice women voters.  But it was not enough to offset the voters who considered the economy (mostly inflation) and immigration as the critical issues.

_The mainstream media’s attacks on Trump backfired.  The same can be said for the “lawfare” used against Trump.  These efforts may have resonated with the Progressive Democrat core, but moderates, independents, working class and first-time voters didn’t buy it.

_The Democrats ran a terrible campaign with a terrible ticket.  As a result there was no advantage based on their historical performance in Presidential elections, the mid-term Red Wave that wasn’t or their traditional turnout the votes “ground game”.  In fact, the Republicans beat them at their own game when it came to turning out the votes.

So, I am glad that I was wrong.  I am not a Trump fan, always voted for someone else in the primaries.  But I am a “right-leaning” moderate which puts me a long way from the Democrats who have embraced so many far-left policies. Therefore, I vote Republican.  Call it self-interest or self-defense.

I am hopeful that we are seeing a fundamental shift away from woke-ism, identity politics and radical ideologies. The Republicans may not Make America Great Again, but it’s certain Democrats have proven they can make it worse.