by Karen Dolan Red state, blue state? That is SO last week. As Democrats have swept into power, shamelessly ignoring the once-sacred red state–blue state divide, one more aspect of this blurring of the nation's political divide remains underreported. This story more fully illustrates the passionate energy of anti-war sentiment in America and it’s a lesson former red-staters would do well to heed. This election, 162 communities in Wisconsin, Illinois and Massachusetts voted on ballot measures calling for the U.S. to end the Iraq War. In every one of those communities, the measures swept to victory. In Milwaukee, fully 72 percent of those voting supported the "orderly, rapid and comprehensive withdrawal" U.S. troops from Iraq. Citizens in Springfield, Ill., citizens passed their "Bring the Troops Home" ballot measure with at least 60 percent approval. Massachusetts had 139 communities all voting yes to an immediate end to the Iraq war with a directive to bring all of the troops home now. Mirroring anti-Bush sentiment in the congressional and gubernatorial races, the "Bring the Troops Home" ballot measures received great support even in legislative districts that went for Bush in 2004. Take DuPage County, Illinois, where one of these ballot measures easily passed in the town of Downers Grove. Even the Illinois Republican Party dubs DuPage County as "America's Most Republican County." Republican voters outnumber Democrat voters two to one. In 2004, George W. Bush carried this county by 10 percentage points. Every elected official in DuPage County is a Republican. Anti-war ballot measures also passed in outgoing Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert’s congressional district. These 162 communities join 110 cities, including Chicago and Philadelphia, which have already passed city council resolutions and ballot measures calling to end the war and bring troops home. As Steve Burns, one of the tireless organizers from Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice that facilitated these victories in his state puts it, "I don't think the voters could make themselves any clearer ... Now it's time for our government to listen.” The Cities for Peace movement began to spread through nation in the months running up to the March 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. At that time, close to 200 U.S. cities and towns, including New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Chicago and other large cities, had passed resolutions opposing the pending invasion. Those resolutions, representing 55 million Americans, foretold the disaster that has since unfolded in Iraq. They stand as written testament to the wisdom of the U.S. citizen, even in the face of opposition from our own government. Now, three and a half years later, there are close to 300 U.S. cities and towns calling for rapid or immediate end to the war and occupation. From our very grassroots, from our close to 300 Cities for Peace, we see an incomplete, but emerging picture of a nation for peace. Paul Shannon, of the Massachusetts American Friends Service Committee, knows well the hearts and minds of his neighbors in Massachusetts where the peace ballot measure passed in each one of the 139 communities. He tells it this way, “This war was sold to us based on lies; and in community after community across the nation that reality has hit home.” The lexicon of the red state/blue state may be fast becoming a fond memory as the colors bleed with anti-war sentiment. [Karen Dolan is a fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, D.C. She also co-directs the Cities for Peace and Cities for Progress projects.] Article originally published online at TomPaine.com November 10, 2006

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