An aura of political mystery swirls around swing states in the US. Like trade winds for ancient sailors, swing states are pivotal but seem unpredictable. Millions of political onlookers every four years ask "Where will they go this time?" The very word "swing" suggests vacillation and a propensity to move independently from other, more consistently partisan populations, but the political orientations among voters in swing states are not so different from deeply red and blue states.

ME