Lab #2 Map Discussion

Below are two versions of the 2008 Election Map. The first map (below) is a precise replication of the New York Times Election Map from the New York Times website. The above map is my own creative elaboration of the original map, containing additional information to make the map more interesting to viewers. My intention was to turn the election map into a fun, splashy, cartoon-like image, comparing the standard election map to the proportional electoral map of the 2008 election, representing each state's size by the number of electoral votes granted to that state. Showing the U.S. states proportional to the number of electoral votes it has creates a more understandable representation of the distribution of votes. As you can see, the original map seems to have more U.S. land area colored red, seemingly indicating a Republican win. This can be misleading, since many of the "red" states, though large in area, are sparsely populated and thus have a small proportion of the country's electoral votes. It may be confusing to viewers how Democratic candidate Barack Obama won the election even though the majority of states appear to have voted Republican. Juxtaposing the two maps allows viewers to understand the area-population inequality of the United States, and makes it more clear how many votes actually went to the Democratic candidate, Barack Obama. I added cartoon images of the two candidates, attempting to illustrate their respective probable reactions to the outcome of the election, as well as cartoon-like font. I also added bright colors in an attempt to give my own map more personality than the original.