Apr 282009
 

Senator Specter’s switch to the Democratic Party is as much about political realignments as it is about Specter’s own desire to remain in power. The era of the Northeast moderate Republican is effectively over. Pennsylvania, along with the rest of the region, has been trending blue for a long time. And the minority who identify as Republicans are becoming ever more conservative. Specter knew that electoral prospects in a contested primary for a middle-of-the-roader like himself were increasingly dim, so switching parties vastly improves his chances for being reelected. And it’s probably easier to be the dissenting moderate voice in a left-of-center party than the dissenting moderate voice in a far-right party.

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