For years, the Republican Party has insisted that they’re the party of the working class, with all manufacturing and production that fuels the economy coming from red areas with right-leaning economic policies. A new study shows, however, how very backwards that claim really is, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Vaccinated Democratic counties are leading the economic recovery:
Data show America's output is concentrated in counties that Biden won—which are better protected against delta. https://t.co/3sMuKYNeHt
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) August 28, 2021
In counties where people are more likely to vote Democrat, which also happens to be counties where people are far more likely to have received the vaccine to protect them against the worst of the new Delta variant of the coronavirus, the economic recovery has been more successful and economic output far outpaces counties where people are more likely to vote Republican.
According to Bloomberg Businessweek:
‘The geography of America’s economic engine is heavily concentrated in counties that Joe Biden won in 2020. These counties are much more heavily vaccinated than the rest of the country and thus better able to withstand the economic effects of Covid’s delta variant.’
As the delta variant began taking hold in Los Angeles this year, vaccinated residents were still 29 times less likely to be hospitalized with Covid-19 than their unvaccinated peers https://t.co/vL1BiO4WFS pic.twitter.com/ZJJMva61c9
— Forbes (@Forbes) August 28, 2021
In fact, this has been true for some time, even well before vaccinations became so vital to the country. Four years before President Joe Biden was elected and a COVID-19 vaccine was produced, the same type of studies showed that the economic output of blue counties was significantly higher than in red counties.
‘The 472 counties Hillary Clinton won produced 64% of the country’s economic output, while the 2,584 counties Donald Trump won contributed just 36%. That was a significant jump from the 2000 election, when the blue-red county economic split was 54% to 46%.’
CA continues to lead the nation’s economic recovery, adding 114K+ new jobs in July – more new jobs than any other state.
That’s 671k+ new jobs this year.
We'll continue to support workers & businesses hit hardest by COVID-19 so our economy can thrive.https://t.co/OHeifvA5RS
— Office of the Governor of California (@CAgovernor) August 20, 2021
With vaccination rates significantly higher in blue counties and workers less likely to become seriously ill when protected by the vaccine, the divide has become even more apparent, with blue counties making up a vast majority of output over red counties.
‘The 520 counties Biden won account for fully 71% of U.S. gross domestic product, while the 2,564 that Trump carried produced just 29%. In other words, America’s economic engine is bluer than ever. The partisan lean of these 520 economically vital counties has almost certainly helped to protect U.S. growth because Democrats are much more likely to be vaccinated than Republicans.’
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell says that the economic recovery is continuing apace, high inflation is just temporary, and the Fed will soon wind down the emergency economic stimulus program https://t.co/nAnTZfT7ar
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) August 27, 2021
