Louisiana
9 votes
Bush - 15 points
The last time this state voted Democratic....
... Frank McCourt's book "Angela's Ashes" was released.
Race
- Heavily white
- Large African-American population
Nine of every ten blacks voted Democratic but it couldn't match
Bush's margin gained from the votes of three of every four
whites.
Age
All groups - Bush
Nothing significant to report here except that seniors favored
Bush heavier than other groups.
Economics
Poor and working class - Kerry
Lower middle class and up - Bush
Kerry has a big advantage among the poorest voters but it
recedes to a near-tie among the working class. The lower middle
class breaks for Bush. And everyone higher than that is solidly
Bush.
Politics
- High partisanship
- Slight Democratic tilt
- Terrible Democratic loyalty
- Excellent Republican loyalty
- Independents tilt significantly Republican
More depressing party stats. Almost a carbon copy of Kentucky
with a small Democratic advantage being overcome by massive
Democratic defections (21%) and a 19-point GOP advantage
among independents. Yet another Democratic state that won't
elect a Democrat.
Ideology
- Huge conservative tilt
Liberals are outnumbered more than 2-1 here - and they are less
loyal to their party than Republicans are. Moderates favor Bush -
but not by much.
Religion
- Protestant plurality
- Large Catholic population
At 59% Bush won the Protestants but found them less friendly
than in many some other southern states like Texas, Alabama
and South Carolina. Also Protestants are less dominant here.
But Catholics made up the difference swamping Kerry by more
than 2-1.
Demographics
- A fairly even mix of urban, suburban and rural
Though he put up a good fight in the urban areas he lost them.
He dropped the suburbs by more and the rural areas by more
still. His strength in the New Orleans area - which he won by
nine - was more than offset by losses everywhere else.
Other factors
Approval of Bush and the war both run in the upper fifties.


The Land of the Blue
Where centrism and progressivism meet