West, South May Define Political Future
All arguments about party preferences aside, the west and south will likely have a powerful influence on America's political future as the fastest-growing regions in the nation. So notes Facing South's Chris Kromm in his article "The Fast-Growing South." Kromm tales a look at just-released Census data and shows that five of the top ten fastest-growing states in percentage terms are southern states: GA (4th), TX (5th), NC (7th), FL (9th) and SC (10th). Kromm elaborates:
The Northern states hailed as the future of the Democratic Party by some pundits are nowhere to be found on the list. Indeed, as if to answer those who claim the Midwest and Northeast should be the centerpiece of progressive strategy, the Census Bureau observes:* The Northeast region grew by only 62,000 people. In contrast, the South grew by 1.5 million and the West by 1 million.
Ranking the fastest-growing states in terms of raw numbers, the South looks even more significant, TX (1st), Fl (2nd), GA (4th), NC (6th) and TN (10th).