Today I speak of a demographic trend in the United States that will fundamentally change the country we are and have been. It will fundamentally alter and realign our politics, our two major political parties, and the rhetoric used by political candidates for their political campaign strategy.

The changes are now happening so rapidly that we are already a very different country than we were 10 years ago. The number of white people in America declined the last 10 years, while the number of Asian, Black and Hispanic Americans grew by 17 million. It is not a trend that will abate anytime soon. In 10 years, Americans under the age of 26 will be the majority minority. Within 25 years, white people will be less than half the American population.

This change in our demographic makeup is without historical precedent. There is no playbook for political parties to follow in a majority minority nation. There is only conjecture to offer on how parties will realign going forward.

This much we do know. The number of majority minority states and jurisdictions will inevitably grow in the coming years. For democrats, the challenge will be holding together their coalition of black, Asian, Hispanic and their current 50% share of white voters. For the Republican Party, the challenge will be expanding the size of their tent. It cannot long survive as a white only grievance party. If it is to remain viable, it will have to adjust its political campaign strategy and improve its appeal to minority voters.

For those running for office now, or during the coming years, it means paying very close attention to how the racial and demographic make-up in your jurisdiction is trending.

Race is not the only demographic trend to watch. There are others:

Partisan identification. Turnout. Household income, education level, ethnicity, age, gender, housing type, households with children, marital status, occupation.

It is truthfully said that your campaign message and political campaign strategy is determined by the political environment, your resources and your opponent. Understanding the demographic make-up and the long-term trends of your jurisdiction are a part of those calculations. They profoundly affect your message, your strategy, your advertising budget, and how you assemble your election day coalition.

Ignore them at your own peril, lest you find on election night that your finely tuned message was out of sync with the voters you needed to win an election.

If you are looking for help in your campaign, I am not hard to reach. Call me at (845) 458-1210. Be sure to leave a message. I will get back to you. The call is FREE.