(Thanks to Political Wire for drawing our attention towards this report by Open Secrets.org.)

It seems that troops abroad have financially supported Obama by a margin of 6 to 1 over rival John McCain. This is astounding folks. It’s no secret that the military has long favored the Republican party and the overall contributions by party still seem to indicate that (59% to GOP) but when money donated to Presidential candidates is looked at in detail, Obama is the clear winner. This is over a candidate that is a war hero and seen as a strong voice on foreign affairs.

Despite McCain’s status as a decorated veteran and a historically Republican bent among the military, members of the armed services overall — whether stationed overseas or at home — are also favoring Obama with their campaign contributions in 2008, by a $55,000 margin. Although 59 percent of federal contributions by military personnel has gone to Republicans this cycle, of money from the military to the presumed presidential nominees, 57 percent has gone to Obama.

Individuals in the Air Force, Army, Navy and Marine Corps have all leaned Republican this cycle, but the only branch in which that ideology has carried over to the presidential race is the Marine Corps, where McCain leads Obama by about $4,000. In each of the other branches — including the Navy, in which McCain served when he was taken prisoner during the Vietnam War — Obama leads by significant margins.

“That’s shocking. The academic debate is between some who say that junior enlisted ranks lean slightly Republican and some who say it’s about equal, but no one would point to six-to-one” in Democrats’ favor, said Aaron Belkin, a professor of political science at the University of California who studies the military. “That represents a tremendous shift from 2000, when the military vote almost certainly was decisive in Florida and elsewhere, and leaned heavily towards the Republicans.”

While I am inclined to wonder if this signals a sea-change among military personnel, some expert are quick to caution drawing any major conclusions.

A former West Point professor, Jason Dempsey, noted that the small set of contributions from deployed troops at this point in 2008 — just 323 donations — should not be extrapolated to form conclusions about military personnel overall. “If, on a bad day, a guy gets that letter that says [his tour has been extended] from 12 to 15 months, that could spur a quick donation and expression of anger,” he said. “Donating helps members of the military express their political views privately.”

Seeing political activity of any sort among soldiers is notable, Dempsey added. “It’s hard to describe how apolitical a lot of the enlisted ranks are. He’s worried about other things than following the news.”

…

“One possibly mundane explanation (for the tilt in contributions from deployed soldiers) is that the Obama campaign has just been so much savvier with web-based donors. It may be a logistical question,” Belkin pointed out.