Zogby in his great book, “The Way We’ll Be” observes that how you categorize the voters can clarify the results of polling tremendously.

While the common media still clings to old perceptions of race and sex, people today think in terms of other groups.

In the 2004 election 61% of the voters who identified themselves as investors voted for Bush.

Whether they were a union member, young (18-29), women, Hispanic, middle income (50k-75k) or single; they were more likely to vote Republican if they identified themselves as investors.

2 in 5 of those who identified themselves as investors had portfolios of less than $50,000; 3 in 5 had portfolios of less than $100,000.

A majority of Americans (52%) identified themselves as investors in a Zogby poll in July , 2007- a number that has been steadily growing.

HKO Comments- Obama’s tax policy to raise taxes on dividends and capital gains attacks the new investor class. Obama is very conservatively invested in mostly fixed income which has been a smart place to be for the last year, but it may also distance himself from some of the concerns of the investor class.

His campaign would be smart to move beyond the old divisions of race and gender. Focus on how the voters see themselves.

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