Yet another set of electoral vote maps

The Ides of March are upon us (OK, they were yesterday).

Let us begin today with the state of the race as it is. The Democratic Party has two serious candidates, either of whom could well be the next president. Obama has broader appeal and a shot at winning in states that Democrats have not been able to win since 1964.

Hillary, on the other hand is a known quantity, which gives her a high floor but a lower ceiling. Whether or not you think going to foreign leaders' funerals counts as experience, many Americans do. And if the economy becomes the pivot for the election (indeed, a liquidity and dollar crisis is far from improbable), she could become November's gold standard: a safe haven for voters fleeing instability.

Right now, there are only a handful of states that are firmly in Hillary's pocket. All except Arkansas are states that every Democrat has carried since 1992.

If Hillary Clinton is the nominee, John McCain begins with 216 electoral votes. Hillary begins with 163.

Hillary's map here.

Where does Obama start? My estimates have Obama starting at 225 electoral votes, while he holds McCain to just 123. Clinton starts out needing 107 EV's of the 190 she can make a race of (the yellow, undecided portion of the map) to get to 270. Obama needs just 45 and is able to expand the playing field he is competitive in to 190.

Obama's map here

(Sorry for having to link you to my non-Kos page--it was hard enough to figure out how to put the maps on my blog)