Something to think about

After the presidential election of 2016, I wrote a blog with some post-election ponderings.  Now that Senator Elizabeth Warren has made a formal announcement that puts her on the path to be a candidate to be the 2020 Democratic Party presidential nominee, it is time to go back and look at a few things.  One of them is contained in this chart that was created right after the election.

The updated vote tallies for 2016 in the popular vote were:

Clinton - 65,853,614

Trump - 62, 984,828

But here are the more important numbers.  Voter turnout by eligible voters in those election years:

1992 - 55.2%

1996 - 55.2%

2000 - 49.0%

2004 - 50.3%

2008 - 55.7%

2012 - 54.9%

2016 - 55.5%

Like it or not, in the last three presidential elections, the turnout by Republicans has increased while the turnout by Democrats has decreased.  While the turnout in key states is of greater import because of the flawed Electoral College system, getting people to vote is the key to winning in 2020.  No matter who the nominee is.

The 2018 midterm elections show that this is definitely doable.  Right after that election, NPR reported that more than 47% of eligible voters cast a ballot.  Factor in the voter suppression efforts of Republicans and that number is even more impressive.  It was the highest turnout for a midterm since 1966.

The path to victory in 2020 will take:

1.  A concerted effort to increase voter registration among Democrats, everywhere.

2.  Working to identify and defeat voter suppression efforts.

3.  Making sure that we get those voters to the polls.

4.  Protecting the security of the absentee ballot process from things like this.