FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Press Release #08-197

Political Author Dr. Thomas Schaller Describes ‘How the Democrats Can Win the White House without the South’

(St. Mary’s City, MD) Oct. 15, 2008 – A nationally known political analyst and author makes a timely appearance at St. Mary’s College of Maryland (SMCM) to share his views on the Democrats’ chances of having their candidate elected on Nov. 7. The SMCM Center for the Study of Democracy will host Dr. Thomas F. Schaller on Tuesday, Oct. 21. His lecture “Whistling Past Dixie and the 2008 Election: How Democrats Can Win the White House without the South,” will take place in the Cole Cinema of the Campus Center at 7:30 p.m. A question and answer session and book signing will follow the lecture. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Abby Thompson at 240-895-6432.

Schaller will be discussing the subject of his book Whistling Past Dixie, in which he identifies the states of the American Southwest—Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada—as central to the creation of a new winning geographic coalition for Democrats. The coalition now excludes the once sought after South. “I am excited about getting Dr. Schaller down here for our students and the community,” said Professor Michael Cain, director of the Center for the Study of Democracy. 

“The South is no longer the ‘swing’ region in American politics – it has swung to the Republicans,” said Schaller. “Most of the South is beyond the Democrats' reach, and what remains is moving steadily into the Republican column. The twin effects of race and religion produce a socially conservative, electorally hostile environment for most Democratic candidates.”

Schaller argues, however, that political attitudes and demographic changes in other parts of the country are far more favorable to Democratic messages and messengers. The Midwest and Southwest are the nation's most competitive regions. There are opportunities to expand Democratic margins in the Mountain red states while consolidating control over the reliably blue Northeastern and Pacific coast states, according to Schaller.

“This election will be an interesting test for Schaller’s permanent realignment message,” said Cain. “There are several reliably red states, like Virginia and North Carolina, which are tilting blue, so it may be that serious economic threats can trump race and religion. We will have to see.”

Schaller, who holds a Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is associate professor of political science at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. He teaches courses in American government, including the U.S. presidency, Congress, and interest group behavior. He is author of Whistling Past Dixie: How Democrats Can Win without the South and co-author of Devolution and Black State Legislators: Challenges and Choices in the Twenty-First Century.

A twice-monthly political columnist for the Baltimore Sun and contributing writer for Salon, he has published commentaries in major U.S. newspapers and political magazines, including The New York Times, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, The American Prospect, and The New Republic. He has appeared on network and cable news programs, as well as on National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered” and “Talk of the Nation” programs, and C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal.” Schaller has given lectures on American politics in Brazil, Egypt, India, Italy, Nepal, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Turkey on behalf of the U.S. State Department.

The Center for the Study of Democracy is a joint initiative of St. Mary’s College of Maryland and its affiliated institution, Historic St. Mary’s City. It explores contemporary and historical issues associated with democracy and liberty in national and international contexts. The center provides a forum for presentations by government officials, journalists and scholars; publishes scholarly writing on subjects of civil governance; encourages and supports public participation in political processes; and engages undergraduate studies in study and research on related subjects. It is directed by Dr. Michael Cain, professor of political science and chair of the political science department.

St. Mary’s College of Maryland, designated the Maryland state honors college in 1992, is ranked one of the best liberal arts schools in the nation by U.S. News & World Report, The Princeton Review, and Kiplinger’s.  Founded in 1840 as Maryland’s “monument school” commemorating the state’s first capital, SMCM is the state’s only public honors college, offering “an Ivy-level College with a public-school price tag” (Newsweek).

Some 2,000 students attend the college, which has the highest graduation rate for all Maryland public colleges and universities, and an SAT average for student admissions of 1252. The school’s waterfront campus along the St. Mary’s River in Southern Maryland is home to the 2007 National Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association Women’s, Sloop and Team champions.