Noam Scheiber writes (and Sullivan posts):

Not only did Kerry win by an 86-13 margin among self-described liberals, he also won by a 55-45 margin among self-described moderates. So how’d Bush pull it off? He won 84-15 among self-described conservatives, and, more importantly, he made sure conservatives comprised a much bigger chunk of the electorate than they did in 2000. (Conservatives comprised about 34 percent of the electorate yesterday, versus 29 percent in 2000 — a huge shift, raw numbers-wise.) Anyone anticipating a conciliatory second Bush term should stop and consider how much Bush owes his base.

Me: I’m not being cute. I can’t link to his full piece and I’m tired. But I don’t get it. How did Bush “make sure” that conservatives comprised a much bigger chunk of the electorate? Couldn’t it be the case that electorate is becoming more conservative?