Rasmussen released a telling and significant report yesterday, which concludes that the number of Democrats in the United States has "soared" to historical levels.
According to the release:
As the public image of the Democratic Party shifted from Congress to the Presidential campaign trail, the number of Democrats in the United States has soared. In fact, during the month of February, the Democrat’s numerical advantage over the Republican Party grew to the highest level ever measured by Rasmussen Reports.
In February, the number of Americans who consider themselves to be Democrats jumped to 41.5%, the highest total on record. Just 31.8% consider themselves to be Republicans. The partisan gap—a 9.7 percentage point advantage for the Democrats—is by far the largest it has ever been. The previous high was a 6.9 point edge for the Democrats in December 2006. Rasmussen Reports tracks this information based upon telephone interviews with approximately 15,000 adults per month and has been doing so since November 2002.
The article explains gains and strengths in several areas, particularly among women and retirees. But another interesting blurb speaks to a particular myth out there – that somehow anybody into finance and wealth must be Republican. According to the study:
Thirty-nine percent (39%) of Investors are Republicans, 37% are Democrats. In December, those figures were 40% Republican, 32% Democrat.
The breakdown among investors is basically even, which should empower our candidate to speak boldly about his / her economic agenda.
But I think the most enlightening part of the whole assessment is the trend:
In 2004, the Democrats began the year with a 2.3 percentage point edge over the GOP. That grew to 4.0 points by March before moving in the Republican direction for the rest of the year. By Election Day in 2004, the edge for Democrats was a mere 1.6 percentage points.
In 2006, the Democrats began the year with just a 1.6 percentage point advantage. That grew to 6.1 percentage points by November.
That increase pretty clearly resulted in victories during the 2006 mid-terms. Here’s hoping that the latest increases pay off big in 2008 as well!