Wed, Jan 07 2009
Published October 06, 2008 04:10 pm - Four weeks away from the presidential election, local undecided voters say they are still waiting for candidates to better address economic issues as well as the country’s future in Iraq. The Swing Vote: A bellwether state w/ undecided voter interview video, audio and poll By Carol Stark
and Dave Woods news@joplinglobe.com Four weeks away from the presidential election, local undecided voters say they are still waiting for candidates to better address economic issues as well as the country’s future in Iraq. Characterized as the election of a lifetime, the 2008 presidential campaign asks the voters to consider race, age and gender in their decision-making. It also is being held weeks after a historic financial bailout and more than five years after the United States launched a war in Iraq. Eyes are on Missouri, political experts say, because the state is considered a bellwether state — one that sets the tone for the rest of the nation. Missouri, the experts say, is even a contender for the title “Bellwether of Bellwethers.” Stuart Rothenburg, editor and publisher of The Rothenburg Political Report, has suggested that states such as Colorado, Virginia and Ohio will be the bellwethers of 2008. Missouri’s history is hard to ignore, though. Rothenburg reports that a majority of Missouri voters have sided with the prevailing candidate in every presidential election since 1960. The 1956 election represents Missouri’s only miss in a century, since St. Louis, the state’s largest city, hosted the 1904 World’s Fair. Undecided Donna Bray, 53, of Joplin, said she changes her mind several times each day on which candidate will get her vote. “I absolutely am not decided,” said the mother of two grown sons. “I may make my decision when I walk into the voting booth.” Bray described her politics as conservative and said she would like to see more power placed in the states’ hands and less in those of the federal government. Shannon Hendricks, 39, of Joplin, echoed Brays indecision. “The economy is in really bad shape, and I want the war to stop,” Hendricks said. “I want someone who is going to be for us, the people, and not just for the rich people.” Bray said part of her problem is that the candidates don’t seem to be addressing the issues as they apply to her. “I think they are addressing the economy as it applies to people who make $300,000 to $400,000 a year,” she said. “I don’t think that they are understanding that there are people who make $30,000 to $40,000 a year who want to be acknowledged.” 
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