Gov. Matt Blunt today issued a fiery statement responding to remarks by a St. Louis University political scientist in a St. Louis Beacon article.
Professor Ken Warren told the Beacon that “unequivocally that the racist vote in rural Missouri cost [Obama] the state.”
“People don’t like to use that term, but what else do you call it? We have the data to support that.”
Warren, who conducted an exit poll for the Beacon on Election Day, noted that in the St. Louis area, Obama did better than Democrat Claire McCaskill did in her successful run for the U.S. Senate in 2006. But he was unable to get enough strength in outstate Missouri to defeat McCain, where McCaskill was able to match her urban showing with enough votes in rural areas to defeat incumbent Sen. Jim Talent.
“There was a redneck vote in the rural areas,” Warren said about Obama’s showing.
“Why did Obama not do as well as other Democratic candidates? Unquestionably, it was not over the issues. People don’t vote by and large on the issues. They vote on visceral responses.
“Why did they vote for Nixon, (Chris) Koster, (Robin) Carnahan — three white people — and not vote for Obama? There’s no question that in rural areas, they’re not going to vote for a black guy.”
In response, Blunt issued a statement saying Missourians voted for the candidate they believed best represented their views and values.
“Ken Warren’s allegation that President-elect Obama lost Missouri because ‘the racist vote in rural Missouri cost him the state’ is not only detestable, it is absolutely incorrect. Both the liberal New York Times and conservative Wall Street Journal published articles today on how race was a relatively minor factor in electing our new president.
“Like many Missourians I supported John McCain for President, but now is the time to put the contest behind us. Americans should rally together to support the next President of the United States Barack Obama and not make inflammatory statements that are untrue, offensive and divisive.”
Read the St. Louis Beacon story here.
