America's New Swing Region : Changing Politics and Demographics in the Mountain West

The Mountain West —Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah —has become the new swing region in American politics. All signs point to these states, especially Colorado, Nevada and New Mexico, being crucial in the 2012 election. Unfortunately, the rise of this region has been underreported in the media, and many political observers have only the most superficial understanding of the profound economic, political, and social changes that continue to reshape the Mountain West. America's New Swing Region is the remedy. Led by bestselling author and political analyst Ruy Teixeira, a talented group of scholars assembled by the Brookings Mountain West program (housed at the University of Nevada—Las Vegas) presents the facts and the narrative necessary for understanding what is happening in this region and why it is so important. Contents 1. Introduction and Overview 2. America's New Swing Region: The Political Demography and Geography of the Mountain West 3. Metropolitan Voting Patterns in the Mountain West: The New and Old Political Heartlands 4. Hispanics, Race, and the Changing Political Landscape of the United States Mountain West 5. The Political Attitudes of the Millennial Generation in the Mountain West 6. The Mountain West Today: A Regional Survey 7. Reapportionment and Redistricting in the Mountain West Contributors include Karlyn Bowman (American Enterprise Institute), David Damore(University of Nevada—Las Vegas (UNLV), William Frey (Brookings Institution), Scott Keeter (Pew Research Center), Robert E. Lang (Brookings, UNLV, and the Lincy Institute), Tom Sanchez (Virginia Tech University), and Ruy Teixeira (Century Foundation and the Center for American Progress). Front Cover......Page 1 Title Page......Page 4 Copyright Information......Page 5 Table of Contents......Page 6 Foreword......Page 8 Introduction......Page 12 America's New Swing Region: The Political Demography and Geography of the Mountain West......Page 22 Metropolitan Voting Patterns in the Mountain West: The New and Old Political Heartlands......Page 96 Hispanics, Race, and the Changing Political Landscape of the United States and the Mountain West......Page 109 The Political Attitudes of the Millennial Generation in the Mountain West......Page 134 The Mountain West Today: A Regional Survey......Page 153 Reapportionment and Redistricting in the Mountain West......Page 180 Contributors......Page 214 Index......Page 216 Back Cover......Page 225 Introduction: America's new swing region / Ruy Teixeira America's new swing region: the political demography and geography of the Mountain West / William H. Frey and Ruy Teixeira Metropolitan voting patterns in the Mountain West: the new and old political heartlands / Robert E. Lang and Thomas W. Sanchez Hispanics, race, and the changing political landscape of the United States and Mountain West / William H. Frey The political attitudes of the millennial generation in the Mountain West / Scott Keeter The intermountain West today / Karlyn Bowman and Ruy Teixeira Reapportionment and redistricting in the Mountain West / David F. Damore. "Analyzes effects of the increase in minorities, younger residents, educational levels, and urbanization on the traditionally Republican politics of six states in the Mountain West, comparing changes in voting patterns from 1988 to 2008. Discusses possible ramifications of those changes and the 2010 mid-term elections on the 2012 presidential election"--Provided by publisher.