18 CHAPTER 1|UNDERSTANDING AMERICAN POLITICS
relative strength by state of Mitt Romney and Barack Obama, with the reddest
states showing the strongest Republican support and the bluest states showing
the Democratic strongholds. As you can see, most of the country is purple, which
indicates a geographic intermixing between the parties and their associated ide-
ological beliefs.Conclusion
By understanding that politics is confl ictua l, that it is rooted in process, a nd that it
is everywhere, you will see that modern American political life makes more sense
than you might have thought before you read this chapter. As you proceed through
this book, you will learn important “nuts and bolts” of the American political pro-
cess as well as some political history. In general, though, this book will focus on
contemporary questions, debates, and examples to illustrate broader points about
our nation’s political system. After all, American politics in its current form is the
politics that will have the greatest impact on your life. Though you will likely dis-
agree with some aspects of American politics, our goal in this book is to provide
you with the tools to understand why government operates as it does.Source: Robert J. Vanderbei, Princeton University, “2012 Presidential Election, Purple America,” http://www.princeton
.edu/nrydb/JAVA/election2012 (accessed 11/10/12).PURPLE AMERICA: THE 2012 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION