It is great news for Democrats that Terry McAuliffe has been elected Governor of Virginia over right wing extremist Ken Cuccinelli, but sadly, with the legislature being heavily Republican, the prediction is that little of the new Governor’s agenda for reform is likely to be adopted.
And after the election for Governor in Florida in 2014, even if former Republican Governor Charlie Crist, turned Independent in 2010 for the Senate race, and now Democratic for the gubernatorial race, succeeds in defeating highly unpopular Governor Rick Scott, the GOP hold on the legislature is still likely to be very powerful, and prevent Crist from accomplishing much of what his agenda might be.
So two key states, and possibly more, with decisions of voters to split power, will be just as paralyzed in the ability to have progress, and be as stymied to a great extent, as in Washington, DC, with a Republican House of Representatives and a Democratic Senate.
The argument that divided government is better government has been shown over and over again to be totally lacking in validity, as all it produces most of the time is stalemate and gridlock!
A major test for Governor McAuliffe’s administration will be the uranium mining battle.
The next four years in Virginia will be a constant battle over everything, similar to the US government!
Keeping my fingers crossed that the 2014 elections will end the gridlock.
A breakdown of the exit polls in Virginia.
http://www.nytimes.com/projects/elections/2013/general/virginia/exit-polls.html
Youth voters increased and voted Democrat.
http://www.politicususa.com/2013/11/06/bad-news-republicans-the-youth-vote-grew-2013-voted-democrats.html
When you look at state-by-state election maps, the Democrats are winning in the population centers while the Republicans are prevailing outside these areas.
It helps to explain why the Republicans have the advantage for the individual numbers of congressional seats throughout the United States.
The Democrats, if they care to win electoral landslides (meaning above 400 in the Electoral College along with majority control of the U.S. House of Representatives) are going to have to go into these areas with their campaigns and battle the Republicans with successful differentiating of why they generally make for a better choice.
Part of the problem for Team Blue is they have the same-type tunnel vision Hillary Clinton had campaigning for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination. She figured “elections are won in the swing states.” Well, really they’re won nationally. States, even ones not considered “battlegrounds” are not immune to shifts. And part of the process of doing this is through congressional districts, along with statewide and, eventually, nationwide.
Politics can be both local and national.
Anything less than this concerted effort from today’s Democratic party simply tells me they’re actually fine not having majority control of the U.S. House. (Losing control, with 1994 and 2010, didn’t prevent re-elections for Bill Clinton and Barack Obama any more than the 1954 losses of both houses of Congress having an impact on the re-electability of Dwight Eisenhower.) And that for state legislatures, obviously a part of these congressional districts, Team Blue is also adjusting well to this. That they are doing greatly with winning the presidency. But coming from Michigan, which can be counted for a good five/six points more blue than the national numbers, I’m not satisfied with a Republican state legislature in addition to same-party governance.
Again, you are correct, D, that the Democrats must fight tooth and nail for EVERY Congressional seat, including in the “hinterland”, and convince voters that the GOP is not concerned about them and their futures!
“The argument that divided government is better government has been shown over and over again to be totally lacking in validity, as all it produces most of the time is stalemate and gridlock!”
What’s your alternative? An elected dictatorship every x years?
NO, Mark, the answer is give one party control, and if you do not like the results, then vote them out. Most of the time in our history, we have had the same party in control of the Presidency and Congress.
Whenever we have had a Congress with each party in control of one house, a very rare event, it has been disastrous, as witnessed just in the past three years. Even an opposition Congress has seen more success than a divided Congress, if one looks at history. So to want what we have now is to want stalemate and gridlock! What do you mean by an “elected dictatorship”? IF the people want the same party in control, it is NOT a dictatorship!
By elected dictatorship I mean that people just vote and elect a dictator, so no possibility of gridlock.
We do not have a system of electing dictators, Mark, as we have checks and balances, and a Constitution which prevents it! We have never come close to that concept, and we never will, and we also have a news media that exposes any abuse of power on the part of anyone!
Cuccinelli is a sore loser.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/06/ken-cuccinelli-terry-mcauliffe_n_4227642.html?utm_hp_ref=tw
Attorney General race appears to be headed to a recount.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2013/11/06/history-suggests-herring-would-have-a-shot-in-va-recount/
Professor,
Mark, like Davy Knows Nothing, shows that he also knows nothing.
Jane Doe, you have hit it on the mark! LOL
Republicans getting desperate in recount of Attorney General race in Virginia.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/09/virginia-attorney-general-race_n_4247571.html