Why Didn't Romney Win? Texas Turnout in 2012 Was Among Worst in USA
Cal Jillson, political science professor at SMU's Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences, talks about Texas' low voter turnout in 2012.
By Jim Forsyth
A new statistic goes further to explain why Mitt Romney and the Republicans failed in the 2012 election than any debate over Hispanic voters, social values, or the 47% of the population that relies on government assistance.
1200 WOAI news reports that only 50% of registered voters in Texas bothered to go to the polls and vote in November. That means the largest Republican state in the country had one of the smallest voter turnouts in the country.
Texas had the fourth lowest voter participation rate of any state in the country in 2012. Voter participation in last year's elections dropped ten percent from the election of 2008.
The states with the highest voter participation were generally Democratic states, including...
But Cal Jillson, a political analyst at SMU, says there is an opportunity in these figures for Democrats in Texas as well.
"Anglo elites over the course of Texas history have worked very hard to try to limit the electorate," he said.