There is a widespread assumption in the media that Barack Obama's race may well cost him the election.  The assumption is that unspoken racism will cause some people to pull back from voting for Obama and that when they are in the voting booth they will refrain from voting for him strictly because of his race.  Its the "Tom Bradley" factor.  It is very difficult to test or poll for such racism of course.

Yet could it be that race is more of an asset to Obama than a liability?  There is also speculation that the prospect of the first African American President will substantially increase voter turnout by blacks.  That there could be some voters who only vote for Obama because he is black.  Many black Republicans I have talked to and read about are seriously considering Obama. 

 I tend to think the negative impact of racism sadly will outweigh the increase in the black vote.  But we shouldn't just assume that.