Rural Democrats give party fresh hope in South

"Spurred by the souring economy and a newfound willingness to embrace conservative candidates, the Democratic Party is running its most competitive campaign across the South in 40 years," Greg Hitt reports for The Wall Street Journal.

"The party's rising prospects point toward a once unthinkable goal: a reversal of the 'Great Reversal,' the switch in political loyalties in the 1960s that made the South a Republican stronghold for a generation," Hitt writes. "If the current picture holds, Democrats could use the Southern strength to help craft a workable Senate majority and expand their majority in the House of Representatives. At the very least, it widens the field of competitive seats, forcing Republicans to fight fires in once-reliably solid areas. ... Half a dozen Republican-held House seats across the South, including rural districts in Virginia, North Carolina, Louisiana and South Carolina, are growing more competitive." More may be added to the list.

Hitt's object example is Montgomery Mayor Billy Bright, who "stands a good chance" of winning an open seat in a mostly rural district that has been held by Republicans since 1964. Bright considered running as a Republican, "but he decided that he felt more at home with the Democrats, whom he describes as the party of working people and the party of diversity." Bright says, "The Republican Party has done a wonderful job of making it appear that you don't have a choice, but that's changing. That's changing with me."

Hitt says Sen. Barack Obama's candidacy will drive up black turnout, but he doesn't mention that it might also drive up white Republican turnout, and make some swing white voters less likely to vote Democratic. But the article is a pretty good snapshot of the changing political landscape in the South, especially its rural areas, and is accompanied by good maps.