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Other than voting for the Democratic candidate in the GE, is there really such a great strategic reason for Democrats to line up behind a single candidate in a show of unity early on? I won't go into the theory that having multiple candidates in the race for as long as possible means that attacks are spread out among them rather than focused on a single person. I think that is a valid theory but it has been addressed before in this forum.
Instead, I'm trying to look at it from the perspective of swing voters and disgruntled Republicans. Suppose we had a Democratic president who was so awful that even a lot of Democrats (especially moderates and centrists) felt they couldn't support him. Suppose these Democrats were looking over to see who the Republicans were running. If it were someone like, say, John McCain (whom I personally don't consider to be much different from any other Republican, but a lot of Democrats apparently think he's borderline acceptable), a great show of Republican unity might actually make some Dems less likely to vote for him. They might get suspicious wondering why even the far right wing elements in the party were so eager to get him into office. But if a lot of Republicans expressed disappointment in having him as their nominee, these disgruntled Dems, swing voters, and moderate Republicans might feel a little more at ease.
Just a theory I have, and it may be totally off the mark. I've given up trying to get inside the mind of the average swing voter; I'm no good at it. All I can do is try to imagine how I would think and feel under similar circumstances. Thoughts?
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