CNN’s Data Guy: Things Are Looking BAD for Democrats

In a segment on voter sentiment, CNN’s “data guy” Harry Enten referenced the recent Cracker Barrel fiasco while speaking more broadly about Democrats losing support and how they’re now positioned against Republicans. 

“The Democratic brand has about the appeal with the American voter as the Cracker Barrel rebrand has with the American consumer. Bad, bad, bad!”

Enten pointed to Pennsylvania and North Carolina as states where political trends have shifted in recent cycles, and highlighted Republican gains in voter registration across several battleground states, pointing out that the GOP’s voter-registration position in Arizona, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina is at its strongest point in two decades.

“Look, the Republican Party is in their best position at this point in the cycle since at least 2005. And all four of these key battleground states, we go out to the southwest, Arizona, how about Nevada? Republicans haven‘t done this well since 2005 -- oh, my goodness gracious -- at this point a cycle. North Carolina I couldn‘t find a point at which Republicans were doing better at this point in the cycle. It‘s at least this century. It probably goes way back in the last century. And Pennsylvania, very similar. Republicans are doing better at this point than at any point, at any point this century, at least as far as I could find.”

Enten attributed part of that trend to efforts by Republicans to add new voters and win over people who previously identified as Democrats that the party has alienated by veering too far left. “My goodness gracious, for Republicans, they are converting old former Democrats to their side of the ledger, as well as picking up new voters, registering new voters. And it absolutely paid off for them back in the 2024 election,” said Enten.

New data shows that Democrats lost 2.1 million registered voters between the 2020 and 2024 elections in the 30 states (plus Washington D.C.) that allow people to register with a political party. Meanwhile, Republicans gained 2.4 million new voters.