President Obama Wins Both the Popular and Electoral Vote
After a “long” and sometimes acrimonious campaign President Obama defeated opponent Mitt Romney and claimed victory with 303 electoral votes to Romney’s 206 (Florida’s 29 still outstanding). President Obama also won the popular vote 53% to Romney’s 48% making him not only the first African-American President but also the first re-elected African-American President.
2013 And Beyond
Although President Obama won re-election, it was not as resounding as his 2008 win so I wonder what does exactly this win mean for Democrats and, more importantly, how will Republicans view this loss?
Here’s what I think, Democrats will need to continue to work to build a bridge with Republicans and Conservatives. Republicans will need to be more inclusive and a whole lot less exclusive. This will mean figuring out how to make Latinos, women (particularly single moms), the young and part of the Republican coalition. In particular, Republicans need to begin addressing their minority ideologies on immigration and women’s reproductive rights.
The New Norm
Unfortunately, I also believe this election proved how divided we are as a nation and that moving forward we will need more strategies than just the “blue” or “red” garden varieties. No Party can afford to ignore the “browning” of America. A CNN correspondent (who is Republican and female) put it best when she said that although Latinos were disappointed with Obama, they were terrified of Romney. This means both Parties and any new ones must understand that diversity and multicultural politics is the “new norm”.
The “new norm” for me means if we are indeed going to move forward as a nation we must address social issues affecting working-class poor people not just wealthy white, brown or black conservatives. Yes, I said it, that nasty four-letter word “poor”! It’s as if poor people don’t exist when candidates are discussing the issues. Clearly, the “new norm” means this population is not as voiceless as Conservatives would want them to be. This is the mandate given by Americans last night.
We must listen to and encourage our youth! Youth voters came out and showed out. My son was disenfranchised and didn’t want to vote. Sadly, I totally understood why but I gave him my own Election Day speech and he made the right choice! Our youth must always remain a vital part of any social and political agenda.The “village” must continue to teach our youth how important it is to be part of a solution — apathy and complacency have no place in the minds of our youth! Obama political strategists knew this was important, Romney failed in this area.
This “blue”, “red” system is clearly flawed and imperfect but its what we have and Indeed, if the “new norms” are ignored by any politician seeking office, they will suffer the same consequence as Mitt Romney who is at this time figuring out how to self-deport himself back home!
RCS SIDEBAR: This was the first election in my lifetime that my father, a Caribbean immigrant, was not here to participate in. However, it was also the first election that his grandson was able to vote! So, my son and I cast our votes in honor of “Maxie”. R.I.P. Maxie, my first political pundit!
