Did Democrats Have a "Very Good Night?"
Adam Freedman ·
Nov 9, 2011 at 6:38am
That's what Molly Ball argues over at the Atlantic. She cites.
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- Defeat of Ohio's law to "roll back collective bargaining for public employees"
- Defeat of Mississippi's "personhood' initiative, which would have defined a fertilized human egg as a person.
- Re-election of Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear, a Dem in a Red State.
- Recall of Russell Pearce, Arizona's state Senate president and the author of that state's controversial anti-illegal immigration law.
- "Democrats also hung onto the Iowa state Senate and appeared poised to at least hold the GOP to a tie in the Virginia Senate."
I'm not inclined to pessimism, but shall I make an exception today?
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Comments :
Jul '10
Re: Did Democrats Have a "Very Good Night?"
I don't think so. These results could tell us one of two things.
1. The Democrats missed a golden opportunity to win a statewide referendum on a big issue item, for example gay marriage. Instead, they merely played an apt defensive game against Republican advances in several key states. Just playing good defense in an odd-year election does nothing to push you into the Presidential election next year. They could have started an offensive to create anti-Republican momentum through the next 12 months.
2. The Republicans are reaching too far. We need one more election, one more set of clear, if not huge, wins before we can expand from the core issues of reducing spending, reducing taxes, and reducing barriers to business and investment. Republicans need to hunker down, focus on the basics that delivered us our huge 2010 win, and hit the Democrats at their weak point: jobs and the economy. Basically, we are not in the clear.
Re: Did Democrats Have a "Very Good Night?"
Thanks, I'll hold off on the pessimism for now. I agree with both points. The economic issues need be front and center in 2012, but the GOP can't go so far as to declare a truce on social issues -- that didn't work well for Mitch Daniels.
Re: Did Democrats Have a "Very Good Night?"
I agree that economic issues are where it's at. New Jersey passed by a 2-1 margin a constitutional amendment to allow sports betting which helps to fill the governmnet piggy bank.
Jul '10
Re: Did Democrats Have a "Very Good Night?"
Ohio rejected the individual mandate.
Economic issues are where it's at.
May '10
Re: Did Democrats Have a "Very Good Night?"
While the cat's away the mice will play.
The focus on the Presidential primary took energy (and money) away from "ancillary" issues such as these.The left didn't have those, and was able to focus more effort and energy on these races. An unfortunate consequence, but not really a game changer.
The Dems had a good day, but not a great day. They can be a bit more optimistic after yesterday, and we need to stop taking 2012 for granted.
Jul '10
Re: Did Democrats Have a "Very Good Night?"
What didn't work for Governor Daniels was his messaging, not his underlying point. Rather than using language that alludes to a defeat on a battlefield, saying, as we have been doing for a very long time on Ricochet, that economics needs to be the primary focus of Republicans in 2012 would have saved himself a lot of trouble. Plus, he only ruffled conservative feathers by saying that. Had he stayed in the race and won the nomination (which I personally think he could have done handily), many independents would probably be happy to hear that the Republican candidate was singularly focused on jobs and the economy in the short term.
May '10
Re: Did Democrats Have a "Very Good Night?"
If the temptation is to read too much into an off-presidential year election, how does one view an off-everything election? There was not one state-wide or federal contest on the ballot yesterday in Ohio. The AP touts that it was the highest off-year turnout in 20 years. But two years ago in '09 it was only 2% lower.
It's always the motivated vs the unmotivated. The people have spoken: At less than 50% they could not possibly care less.
Mar '11
Re: Did Democrats Have a "Very Good Night?"
tomjedrz: While the cat's away the mice will play.
The focus on the Presidential primary took energy (and money) away from "ancillary" issues such as these.The left didn't have those, and was able to focus more effort and energy....
Seemed to be clear Ohio was THE focus for Dems, especially HIGHLY motivated unions (bleeding dues elsewhere). I didn't donate to Con causes to Ohio because I don't think out-of-staters should make it a habit of trying to influence state votes that way, which meant I stopped looking at appeal emails. But, about the only place I got any word of what was happening on the ground in Ohio was from those emails, nothing in traditional media or blogosphere.
Prez primary has taken over, especially now that voters seem to be coalescing around a few candidates, and Cain's issues have completely sucked the air out of the Con room right now.
Feb '11
Re: Did Democrats Have a "Very Good Night?"
EJHill:
It's always the motivated vs the unmotivated. The people have spoken: At less than 50% they could not possibly care less. · Nov 9 at 8:04am
The I-won't-vote-for-Romney and I-won't-vote-for-whomever contingents should ponder this point long and hard before spending election day 2012 sitting in their rooms sulking.
Re: Did Democrats Have a "Very Good Night?"
Snow Bird
EJHill:
It's always the motivated vs the unmotivated. The people have spoken: At less than 50% they could not possibly care less. · Nov 9 at 8:04am
The I-won't-vote-for-Romney and I-won't-vote-for-whomever contingents should ponder this point long and hard before spending election day 2012 sitting in their rooms sulking. · Nov 9 at 8:33am
I agree with EJ's observation and the no-sulking rule. I guess what surprised me was that in off-off-year elections, you usually get better turnout from older and more conservative voters - people who don't need to be dragged to the polls. I suppose the Dems/Labor Unions still have effective get-out-the-vote machinery, which shouldn't surprise me.
Yes, economics is the focus. But I'm awfully disappointed in the defeat of the Miss. Personhood initiative. It was leading in the polls.