Why didn't Dukakis carry Illinois in 1988?

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Based on the county map, the only way I could see Bush winning Illinois is if Cook County had at least 50% less influence over state election outcomes as it does today.

[RedSLC]

Probably because of the collar counties. DuPage and Lake counties (the tow largest counties in the state outside Cook) were both >60% Bush, and Cook itself (which contains some suburbs in addition to Chicago) was only 56% Dukakis. Since Bush only won Illinois by 2 points, it's very likely that Bush was able to carry the state on the suburban vote.

[memphis]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io9KMSSEZ0Y

[RedSLC]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io9KMSSEZ0Y

...And that would explain why the Chicago suburbs went so strong for Bush.

[barfbag]

Illinois was still purple then and he was a piss poor candidate. Willie Horton didn't help.

[Clarko95 📚💰📈]

Illinois was trending Democrat in the 1980s. 1988 was just not yet the tipping point, but IL voted about 2.7% more Democrat than the nation. The tipping point would come in 1992.


Illinois was and still is considered a bellwether state in cultural, economic, and demographic terms. However, politically the state became solid Democrat only in 2002(Presidentially: 1992) when Blagojevich won the Governor's race and Dems took the state legislature.

Pre-2004, it was a swing state(believe it or not, Republicans actually campaigned there in 2000).  

[barfbag]

Illinois was trending Democrat in the 1980s. 1988 was just not yet the tipping point, but IL voted about 2.7% more Republican than the nation. The tipping point would come in 1992.


Illinois was and still is considered a bellwether state in cultural, economic, and demographic terms. However, politically the state became solid Democrat only in 2002(Presidentially: 1992) when Blagojevich won the Governor's race and Dems took the state legislature.

Pre-2004, it was a swing state(believe it or not, Republicans actually campaigned there in 2000). 

This is true and Kerry only won about 53-46%. Obama helped tremendously there. Without him on the ticket IL would still be in the light blue column with California and Connecticut. It's still out of play and will be for a while. In 1988 it was trending like you said, but wasn't Democratic yet.

[sg0508]

Again, once the GOP lost the suburbs, they lost states like IL.  Bush did well enough in Cook and killed Dukakis in the collar counties to carry the state and offset his poor showing downstate.

[Napoleon]

Because Bush carried it.

[Fuzzy Bear]

Other than Carter's 50% in 1976, Dukakis' 45% in 1988 was the highest percentage of the popular vote any Democrat received between 1968-92.  The National Democratic Party was not in the shape it's in right now. 

During the 1988 campaign, Dukakis was ahead in early polls in Michigan, California, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Vermont, as well as Illinois.  He lost ALL of these states; it was the last time any of them went Republican for President.  He ran a poor campaign.  Had he focused on those states and not tried to implement a pseudo-Southern strategy, he may well have been more competitive.  Then again, Dukakis's accomplishments in Massachusetts were revealed as fraudulent soon after the 1988 election, so it's probably just as well.  Dukakis was, IMO, the least inspiring candidate of any major party in my lifetime.

[Bandit3 the Worker]

Dukakis actually did win Illinois. I was watching the election returns, and they had the map shaded in for Dukakis. Then crooked DuPage County "found" a bunch of votes for Bush.

And the rest as they say is fascism.

[barfbag]

Dukakis actually did win Illinois. I was watching the election returns, and they had the map shaded in for Dukakis. Then crooked DuPage County "found" a bunch of votes for Bush.

And the rest as they say is fascism.

Sounds like Obama has really gotten in the heads of the leftists. What if I said Bush really won every single state in 2004, but they found a bunch of votes for Kerry and made it close and;... well it's just easier to call you a dolt.

[Down the Gurney]

Dukakis actually did win Illinois. I was watching the election returns, and they had the map shaded in for Dukakis. Then crooked DuPage County "found" a bunch of votes for Bush.

And the rest as they say is fascism.

DuPage found votes for Buch because of the suburbs. Unlike poor and latte liberal urban areas, they don't have a compulsion to vote Democrat.

[stevekamp]

In 2008, Obama carried Dupage by 44,000, in 2012 by 4,000.