Data analysis shows leftward shift in how college towns vote

As American college towns vote in greater numbers for Democratic candidates, Republicans are worried that the margin of victory will make it more difficult for their party to win statewide races, Politico reported. 

A Politico analysis of voting patterns since 2000 shows that the margin of voters in college towns who cast ballots for Democrats has increased significantly. By essentially running up the score in fast-growing college towns from North Carolina to Colorado to Michigan, Democrats have been able to use that advantage to secure some big statewide wins. In the upcoming presidential election, when the candidate with the most votes in a state wins the Electoral College votes, this shift could prove key to President Biden’s re-election. 

Republican state officials in recent years have looked to make it more difficult for students to vote or have drawn districts in a way that dilutes the power of Democratic voters in college towns. The turnout of students and their support for Democrats have played a key role in recent elections, Politico reported.

“The data sure seem to suggest younger voters are leaning much more Democratic in recent years and, perhaps more concerning for the Republicans, the GOP seems to be struggling more broadly with college-educated voters. In the longer term, that may mean these voters may stay Democratic—or at least stay Democratic longer than they might otherwise,” Dante Chinni, director of the American Communities Project, told Politico. “In addition, polls show Republicans are increasingly distrustful of higher education institutions. That probably doesn’t help in the longer term either.”