Is Oakland County going to stay blue? (Detroit, Southfield: real estate, estate)

[Dexterguy]

I heard from a friend of mine that Oakland county must stay blue (Democratic) this year if Michigan is going to be won by the Dems. Does anyone know anything about this?? I looked up how Oakland County voted in the last few elections and in 2004 they were VERY VERY close:
*DEMOCRATIC - 49.7%
*REPUBLICAN - 49.3%
If Oakland County were to turn red (Republican) then would Michigan go to the GOP? If anyone knows anything about this I would love to hear some information on it. And also, what color do you believe Oakland County will be on election day, red or blue??

[plannine]

I think you have your colours wrong. Oakland County has in the past been very Republican in local elections. All the county elected offices (Exec, Treasurer, Clerk etc) have been Republican. The County Commissioners had been 18-7 for years until the last election when when it dropped to 13-12. (After the death of a Democratic commissioner, the Republican majority voted in a Republican to give them a 14-11 margin.) We've pretty much split on President over the past few years.

[mrthemike]

Add me to the blue column.

[Bhaalspawn]

Does anyone think the Mayor of Southfield has a chance of unseating L. Brooks Patterson? After reading a Free Press article about a debate that they had had (or maybe they were just interviewing them) I can't see her unseating Patterson. I get the sense that she would want to sacrifice Oakland County's wealth and economic well being to the City of Detroit and the region in general.

[snoopygirlmi]

Unfortunately, Oakland has been trending blue. And usually, the party that wins 2 of the 3 (Macomb, Wayne, Oakland) wins state-wide. Doesn't bode well for the GOP unless they get large numbers in both Oakland and in Macomb. I really don't see Wayne turning Red. If Wayne didn't have Detroit in it - then it would be a different ball game....

I think it will be closer than what people are predicting and thinking, but in 2006 you need to remember that both parties turned out their voters (and a lot of new voters) and the Dems ended up with more votes in the end. And that was a record breaking elections (in terms of the sheer number of voters for BOTH PARTIES!)

Now add that this is a presidential year and presidential elections bring out even more people than off-year elections, so it's going to come down to who actually shows up to vote on election day.

And all signs point to another recordbreaking year for both parties.

I'm hoping that Oakland goes Red, but I'm not about to predict anything until we start to see the returns on election night. It will be close and very dependent on what demographics turn out and in what numbers.

[bem629]

You really hope that Oakland goes red? It seems to me that the last 8 years have not been that good around these parts. I'd like to see how the Dems do... Sure seems like the Clinton years were more hopeful than now...

--B
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[Dexterguy]

I don't want to start a debate on the thread but we need change and we need the Democrats to win. ^^^I agree with bem629 that the Clinton years were good, here in Michigan and the entire nation. Ever since Bush has been in office the country fell 5 trillion into debt and the Iraq War is KILLING this country!!

[Jwo85]

YES! the Metro Detroit area does need a change and that change

I think the best way for the dems to win the Metro Detroit area is too guaranteed diverse industries (Real Estate, Media, Financials, IT) so that the economy does not revolve around the automotive industry. Other wise this area is always going to have a bad economy because it relies on one industry.