Let's look at which counties made the strongest percent gains in Democratic votes from 2004 to 2008. Where is Texas turning blue the fastest? Through comparing Democratic percentages in Presidential races from 2004 and 2008, we can see where our party is making the fastest gains. Note that this is measuring percent increase, or rate, rather than strictly how many more percentage points the Democrats gained. In short, it shows where we're either closing the gap the fastest, or pulling away the most quickly. I've also included the percentage of the votes earned by the Democrats in 2004 and 2008, and any change in overall turnout.
| Fastest Percent Increase in Democratic Vote |
| County | Percent Increase in Democratic Votes | Democratic % 2004 | Democratic % 2008 | Percent Increase in Turnout |
| Bell | 31.29% | 34.07% | 44.73% | 7.92% |
| Collin | 30.77% | 28.11% | 36.73% | 5.12% |
| Cameron | 30.33% | 49.16% | 64.07% | 1.83% |
| Lubbock | 29.56% | 24.12% | 31.25% | 3.90% |
| Guadalupe | 28.41% | 26.55% | 34.04% | 8.81% |
| Denton | 27.16% | 29.46% | 37.46% | 5.93% |
| Williamson | 27.06% | 33.63% | 42.73% | 6.41% |
| Hildalgo | 25.79% | 54.86% | 69.01% | 1.66% |
| Webb | 25.51% | 56.92% | 71.44% | 3.74% |
| Statewide Averages | 14.92% | 34.14% | 43.68% | 5.18% |
These are huge gains in important areas. Each of these counties increased their Democratic percentage by over a quarter in only four years. This suggests that these counties are ripe for continued large gains, and two of them--Williamson and Bell--look ready to flip blue in the next two cycles, if the right factors emerge. It's great to see Williamson on there. The WilCo coordinated campaign did an excellent job this cycle and elected Diana Maldonado to the TX House. Brian Ruiz also stepped up to offer voters a choice over Jack Carter. Most importantly, precinct conventions gave Williamson Democrats a chance to realize they weren't alone, and reinvigorate local organizing.
But there's something else interesting here: Democrats are making huge gains along I-35 and in the suburban counties north of Austin and Dallas. These are areas in which populations are growing rapidly in Texas. This bodes well for the future--more people voting increasingly Democratic helps get the work done even faster.
I'd also like to note our gains in Bell County, home to Temple and Fort Hood. It's definitely worth a precinct-by-precinct analysis to see exactly where in the county we're making gains. I remember registering voters at BatFest this summer in Austin, and talking to several servicemen and women based out of Fort Hood who were excited to vote Democratic.
Finally, again we see drastic, dramatic gains in South Texas-Cameron, Hildalgo, and Webb. And this is without huge increases in turnout. Imagine if we could organize and boost turnout to average levels across the state! Just think about it!
Other Posts:
Texas By The Numbers: Where The Democrats Are |
