The Democrat party may have shot its re-election chances in the foot by driving prospective voters from blue states to red ones.
Migration by residents into Republican areas has the power to reshuffle the electoral college, since votes are portioned out based on state population.
A state gets one electoral vote for each House representative and senator and since the House is set at 435 seats, a loss from one state translates into a gain for another.
As the sky-high cost of living in many Dem-strongholds such as California and New York forces people out, populations swell in red states resulting in greater representation. More draconian COVID lockdowns in blue states also sent many fleeing to more relaxed Republican alternatives.
Texas, Florida and North Carolina were among the states who welcomed the most new residents.
Of the 899,481 Americans who moved state in 2023, 53 percent went to these three Republican states.
Meanwhile more than 555,000 people left California and New York. The cost of living in these states is 1.3 and 1.5 times more the US average respectively, according to LivingCost.com.
If the trend continues, Republican states could stand to gain 12 Electoral College votes.
The Democrat Party could be at risk of losing control of Congress forever due to an exodus of voters from blue states such as California
This is significant as it would eliminate the need for Republican presidential hopefuls to secure swing states such as Wisconsin, Pennsylvania or Michigan.
California is on track to lose four House seats, while New York could lost three, the Boston Herald reports.
‘California, New York, and other slow-growing coastal Democratic strongholds have taken an explicitly anti-population-growth tack for decades,’ The Atlantic wrote.
‘They took for granted their natural advantages and assumed that prosperity was a given. People willingly giving up their residencies in these coastal areas is a sign of how dismal the cost of living is.’
In addition to a crippling cost of living, many of those who turned their back on blue states have cited harsh lockdown laws.
Between 2010 and 2020, southern states were among the fastest growing in the US, a trend which was boosted during the pandemic.
Others point to failed progressive policies in blue states as a reason to leave.
The Democrat states of New Mexico, Colorado and Washington recorded the most incidents of crime per 100,000 people, according to data compiled by Statista.
Migration by residents into Republican areas has the power to reshuffle the electoral college, since votes are portioned out based on state population. Pictured: San Francisco’s homelessness epidemic
Many Democrat voters are fleeing blue states to take advantage of lower taxation in Republican stronghold like Florida
A state gets one electoral vote for each House representative and senator and since the House is set at 435 seats, a loss from one state translates into a gain for another
California is only now starting to reckon with the problems caused by its soft-touch approach to justice.
In November, all of the state’s counties overwhelmingly voted to accept Proposition 36, which contains provision to clamp down on serial shoplifters and drug users.
The legislation rolled back previous statutes which meant that shoplifters who stole less than $950 could only be prosecuted with a misdemeanor offence regardless of how many times they got caught.
While many Democrat voters might be looking to take advantage of the freedoms and lower cost of living in red states, they have been warned ‘not to bring their politics with them’.
‘Red-state residents don’t care for people coming from blue states,’ bicoastal realtor Cara Ameer told Realtor.com. ‘I have seen resentment in Florida with slogans like ‘Don’t Fauci My Florida.”
‘Some appreciate the influx of new residents as it can boost the local economy and bring in new perspectives,’ Mike Rhoads, owner of Wild North Home Offers in North Carolina added. ‘Others, however, are concerned about the potential impact on their communities and the possible changes in political dynamics.’