Mississippi

Race still matters in the South. A lot.

Exit polls in Mississippi show that whites went for Clinton 72-27. Blacks went for Obama 91-9.

In a race with 2 pioneering candidates, this is maybe not so surprising. White women are pro-Clinton as a whole. OK. For African-Americans, it is clear that race matters more than gender. As for whites of both genders, well in 3 states, Clinton has received more than 70% of the white vote--Mississippi, Alabama, and Arkansas. At least some of this is flat out racism. There are lots of whites across the country that are simply not going to vote for a black person. One county in southwestern Virginia, the heart of Appalachia, went for Clinton 91-9 in a state that Obama won. Why? Race.

West Virginia will be a very interesting state to look at race in this election. Obama kept it close in Ohio, in no small part because there is a good sized African American population there. That doesn't exist in West Virginia. Can Obama connect with white working-class voters in a non-Deep South state? We'll soon find out.