swing voter
People who have neither partisan nor ideological conviction at any detectible level. Most often found in the suburbs, these voters are often swayed by emotional appeals rather than philosophical, moral, or logical arguments. As such, these voters are emotionally torn pulled the two parties – they want to vote Republican as they live what they believe to be the capitalist dream of a comfortable, two-income, and sterile life in the ‘burbs (with the perception of being inoculated from those sticky urban social issues), at the same time they want to vote Democrat to assuage their guilt of their own mindless and unconscious lifestyle (such as talking racial tolerance but living in a racially homogeneous community, expressing horror at things like outsourcing jobs while drawing a paycheck from a company that does it every day, driving gas-guzzling SUVs while claiming their concern for the environment, and outwardly claiming support for their neighborhood public school systems while sending their own kids to private school). Often claiming to be independent, they criticize partisans on both sides for being closed-minded while believing there is nobility in their own indecision.
More and more people are swing voters and we wonder why no one votes (hint: if you don’t have the stones to decide where you stand, then either candidate, or even a non-vote, will do)
swing voter by workinglate February 8, 2007
