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Midwest election insights
Expert sources from Indiana University
Sept. 5, 2000
NOTE: Contact the IU Office of Communications and Marketing at 812-855-3911 for further assistance. This document is also available through our office e-mail address, ocm@indiana.edu
The Midwestern states will be the most pivotal in deciding this year's presidential election, according to IU Political Science Professor Gerald Wright.
Wright, who has studied past presidential elections, said Al Gore and George W. Bush will mostly concentrate on Midwestern states like Ohio, Michigan and Illinois as they are among the few states that are largely undecided.
Wright is currently teaching a class titled Election 2000 in which he examines the presidential election and several legislative races.
Wright can be reached at 812-855-6306 or wright1@indiana.edu
Presidential polls in the key Midwestern states are being closely monitored by Political Science Professor Brian Vargus, director of the IU Public Opinion Laboratory at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis.
Vargus conducts daily state-by-state research to track and anticipate shifts in presidential polling data. He said Indiana appears to strongly support George W. Bush, but other Midwestern states like Wisconsin and Illinois are still up for grabs. Ohio polls indicate the state has been slightly in favor of Al Gore since before the political conventions, but there has been some shifting in some Ohio polls, he added.
Vargus is available to comment on almost any subject related to presidential or political polling. He can be reached at 317-274-7226 or igem1000@iupui.edu
Labor unions could play a significant role in the outcome of the presidential election, according to Peter Seybold, director of the Labor Studies Division at IU.
"With several Midwest states expected to be pivotal in the election, the strength of labor in this region could be a major factor. Labor unions have historically had a strong voice in such states as Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio," Seybold said, and several of these are expected to be key states in the presidential sweepstakes.
Seybold has 14 years of teaching and research experience in the labor field. He can be reached at 812-855-8309 or pseybold@indiana.edu