After the GOP’s national defeat in the election, far-right commentator Rush Limbaugh told his listeners: “I went to bed last night thinking we’re outnumbered …” For once, Limbaugh may be factually accurate.

A phenomenon sociologists call “the rising American electorate” gradually is swinging this nation toward Democratic Party values — away from traditional white male, rural conservative, evangelical dominance. Growing numbers of younger urban blacks, Hispanics, Asians, independent single women and other progressive groups slowly are shaping the voting populace, solidly backing programs that help average families. Remarkably, “secular” Americans who seldom attend church have become the strongest bloc in the Democratic base.

Various polls find that such groups have little interest in tax giveaways to the elite, but strongly want America to invest more in jobs and education to aid the middle class.

Columbia University journalism professor Thomas Edsall said changed political outlooks can be seen in a Pew Research poll that found Americans under 30 — along with blacks, Hispanics and people earning less than $30,000 a year — now view capitalism as less appealing than socialism.

A group called the Democracy Corps wrote:

“Barack Obama won because he recognized a new America. The president managed only 39 percent of the white vote, the lowest white percentage recorded for a winning national candidate … but won both the popular vote and an Electoral College landslide by energizing voters we describe as the Rising American Electorate.”

— The Charleston (W.Va.) Gazette