AdamT
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I've seen some conservatives arguing that Obama doesn't have any kind of mandate because the voters really came down for gridlock: they voted for Obama, but they also voted for a Republican majority in the House.
There's just one problem with that argument -- it isn't true. In fact it appears that there were more votes cast for Democrats in the House races than there were for Republicans, albeit by a very small percentage. The reason more Republicans won seats is that districts are gerrymandered to produce the desired result. Because there are 30 Republican governors to 20 Democratic governors, the result of that gerrymandering favored the Republicans.
This is the congressional equivalent of a president winning the Electoral College but losing the popular vote.
Why Americans Actually Voted For A Democratic House | ThinkProgress
There's just one problem with that argument -- it isn't true. In fact it appears that there were more votes cast for Democrats in the House races than there were for Republicans, albeit by a very small percentage. The reason more Republicans won seats is that districts are gerrymandered to produce the desired result. Because there are 30 Republican governors to 20 Democratic governors, the result of that gerrymandering favored the Republicans.
This is the congressional equivalent of a president winning the Electoral College but losing the popular vote.
Why Americans Actually Voted For A Democratic House | ThinkProgress