2012 Election Center: The Main Event - Obama Wins

[Mr Khan]

TeddostheFireKing said:

the_dengle said:
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In 1976, the Democrat won Texas while the Republican won California!

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1968:

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I'm not familiar with American history, why does Reagan have just one vote inside the north western most province in the 1976 map?

And why is there a third candidate in the 1968 election? Is that a Republican candidate? :S

1 Rogue elector (you can see a rogue elector in North Carolina in the 68 map as well). What we often forget is that the Electoral College isn't just a points system (as in you win Pennsylvania and automatically get 19 points), you win a state, and that state sends electors to the college who pledge to vote how the state voted. However, they can actually vote as they will, just that generally the two parties have been disciplining their electors enough that this hasn't happened in 30 years. One guy in Washington just decided to off and vote for Reagan, as one North Carolina elector went off and went Wallace.

Wallace was a conservative Democrat, who ran on a pro-segregation platform and, as a result, had a near-successful attempt on his life during that race, which didn't stop him from winning the Deep South.