Democrat Registration Numbers Surge Behind the Orange Curtain

Cross-posted from American Power.

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The O.C.'s a polarized county.

If you get up into North Orange County, it's almost like Los Angeles and Long Beach. Totally diverse --- and leftist.

But in South Orange County --- Mission Viejo, Laguna Hills, Aliso Viejo, and Dana Point, for example --- I'm sure there's still large Republican majorities. But even there it's changing.

At the O.C. Register, "Democratic surge shrinks GOP lead":

A surge in Democratic voter registration has cut Republicans’ advantage in Orange County to less than 6 percentage points and has doubled the number of Democratic cities over the past year.

The Republican margin has been shrinking since 1990, when the GOP edge was 22 points. But in the past six months, the pace of change has been four times as fast as the 26-year average – due in part to the GOP’s controversial presidential nominee. That could hurt the local Republicans in November’s down-ticket races.

“Donald Trump has become our best marketing tool,” said Henry Vandermeir, chairman of the Democratic Party of Orange County. “He’s insulted pretty much every constituency in this county, which has helped drive Democratic registration and turnout to new highs.”

Vandermeir’s registration efforts have gotten a boost from other quarters. In addition to the county Democratic Party, at least four left-leaning groups – including MoveOn.org – have been registering voters in Orange County. County GOP Chairman Fred Whitaker said his party has gotten virtually no outside help.

Additionally, Sen. Bernie Sanders attracted young adults who might have otherwise not participated. And the competitive Democratic presidential primary in June boosted turnout, while the Republican contest was already decided....

Orange County was long touted as the nation’s most Republican county. The modern-era high point was 1990, when the GOP’s 56 percent share of the electorate translated to a 22-point advantage over Democrats. (In 1928, Republicans were at 73 percent.)

That edge has slowly dropped, to 17 percentage points in 2000 and to 11 points in 2010.

Republicans are now 39.7 percent of county voters, an all-time low. Democrats are at 34 percent, their highest since 1992. Voters with no party preference account for 22.6 percent, down from the all-time high of 23.6 percent last year.

That means Republicans’ 8-percentage point edge in February has shrunk to 5.7 points...

I grew up in Orange County. Shoot, I walked to school through the orange groves behind my postwar track housing neighborhood. It was great!

But keep reading (via Memeorandum).

If you click though, little noticed there is the surge in "no party preference" voters, at almost 23 percent (up from 10 percent in 1992). A lot of independents are extremely angry and frustrated and may well vote for Trump as the anti-establishment outsider. I think idiot Democrats ought not be counting their presidential chickens before they hatch.