News/Campaigns

Axelrod: ‘We’ve Waged a Truly National Campaign’

David Axelrod, the chief strategist for Barack Obama’s presidential campaign, sounded an optimistic tone, touting the fact that several traditionally red states have yet to be called.

“I feel good that we’ve waged a truly national campaign,” Axelrod said on MSNBC. He noted that Obama has several paths to victory, including ones that include Western states and others that include the traditional swing states of Ohio and Florida.

“We are thrilled to be competing as vigorously as we are in these other states,” Axelrod said.

He added that Indiana, which has yet to be called for either candidate despite polls closing at 7 p.m. there, has traditionally been among the first states called for Republican presidential candidates.”I think we’re running ahead of the patterns for previous Democratic candidates for the last couple of cycles,” he said. “All of this is encouraging for us.”