June 18, 2004

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Knife-Edge Politics

I just became interested in the election again.

The LA Times has a kick-ass interactive map that lets you toggle states between Bush and Kerry to see how the electoral college is shaping up.

It’s pre-populated with the latest national poll data: Both candidates have 154 electoral votes locked down, and there are 230 up for grabs. You need 270 to win.

It’s really interesting to click around and see how important a single state can be. In one scenario, I gave each swing state to the party that won it in 2000, but left Florida out. The tally was Bush 251, Kerry 260. And in Florida, worth 27, Bush and Kerry are separated by one point in the polls. Sheesh!

Props to the LAT for this great tool. Even with the talk of a 50/50 nation, I didn’t really realize how close this election is going to be until I got to, you know, do it myself.