Blow for Obama as Democrats lose in Virginia and New Jersey
One year into his presidency and Barack Obama, or more to the point his political clout, suffered a wobble as the Democrats last night lost the governorship of Virginia and saw the incumbent Democratic governor in New Jersey ousted.
Virginia, as the Guardian reports was one of the high points on Obama’s campaign to victory last year in the presidential race, but maybe even more of a blow is the loss of the traditional Democratic seat in New Jersey. It was this race that Obama, weighed down by domestic issues and Afghanistan, and his team were most closely associated with.
The Los Angeles Times says the gubernatorial losses dispels any notion of President Obama’s electoral invincibility, giving the GOP a lift and offering warning signs to Democrats ahead of the 2010 midterm elections.
The Boston Globe, however, cautions that “off-year races” such as Virginia and New Jersey are often sleepy affairs, and reported that turnout for the most part appeared to be low.
It said that voter apathy seemed to belie “the more dramatic narrative that has been hoisted on the races, which political officials have described as high-stakes contests that could shape next year’s congressional agenda and reveal deep divisions within a Republican party seeking a return path to power”.
This was echoed by the New York Times which said that exit polls showed that voters in both states remained strongly supportive of Obama and that the loss in New Jersey might have had more to do with the deeply unpopular Democratic incumbent, Jon S. Corzine, who was marred by scandal and whom no amount of adspend or White House politcal savvy could save.
Gene adds: When we get results like this in off-year elections (which happens frequently regardless of whether the president at the time is Republican or Democrat), the party in control of the White House claims that they are no reflection on the incumbent while the opposition party claims a total repudiation of the incumbent. Both are indulging in wishful thinking.
Another result to throw into the mix is the victory of Democrat Bill Owens in a special Congressional election in a traditionally Republican district in upstate New York. Owens defeated Doug Hoffman, who ran as a third-party candidate and received enthusiastic backing from the likes of Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin. The Republican candidate, Dede Scozzafava, dropped out on the eve of the election and endorsed Owens.
Comments
| 4 November 2009, 11:59 am |
The Corzine loss, combined with the overwhelming Republican sweep in Virginia, may doom Or President’s agenda. I’ll be watching McCain/Bush district Dems for the next few days.
| 4 November 2009, 2:01 pm |
It was Fox News that won NJ for the Dems. I read a few days ago that Corzine wasn’t interested in doing an interview for them and they went ahead and aired the other candidate’s interview anyway, in flagrant disregard for standards of “fairness” and “balance”.
| 4 November 2009, 2:03 pm |
Or the Republicans, maybe. Or somebody.
| 4 November 2009, 2:25 pm |
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Democratic seat in New Jersey. It was this race that Obama, weighed down by domestic issues and Afghanistan, and his team were most closely associated wit
| 4 November 2009, 2:27 pm |
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by domestic issues and Afghanistan, and his team were most closely associated wit
| 4 November 2009, 2:30 pm |
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NY-23 on the one hand and the Virginia & New Jersey gubernatorial races on the other.
| 4 November 2009, 3:04 pm |
If you are opposed to corruption, you’ll be delighted by Christie’s victory in New Jersey.
| 4 November 2009, 4:29 pm |
Folks are reading too much into NJ and Virginia results which are first and foremost about State and not Federal issues. Here in Virginia, the Democratic candidate, Deeds turned out to be wet firecracker of a candidate. Corzine was unpopular in NJ. NJ exit polls showed Obama that his support is still in the high 50s: And is in the 50%-55% nationwide.
Note: The New York Congressional race that Sarah Palin, Glen Beck & Rush Limbaugh all backed the Conservative Party candidate while demonizing the moderate Republican nominee was won by the Democratic candidate in a Republican district. The successful Republican candidate for Governor in Virginia turned down repeated requests from Palin for her to campaign here in this generally conservative state. If the GOP wishes to win in 2010 & 2012 they have to keep the nutty Teabaggers in the closet. A good first step towards doing so would be to exile Palin back to Alaska or preferably to Siberia.
| 4 November 2009, 4:34 pm |
“Its all very well to blame the Big Bad Rabbit when the by-elections are going against the government.”
(In celebration of the 40th anniversary of Monty Python.)
| 4 November 2009, 5:23 pm |
If Democratic bosses in Gene’s congressional annointed a pro-life, tax-cutting, AGW-denier, would Gene call him a “moderate”?
| 4 November 2009, 5:25 pm |
Corzine outspent by five to one, and wheeled out the nobel prize winning one repeatedly and still got spanked.
Kiss ObamaCare good bye…
| 4 November 2009, 5:29 pm |
This is interesting from Dick Morris:
But the votes in Virginia, in particular, show the limits of Obama’s appeal. The winner, Bob McDonnell, won the attorney general’s race in the last election by a few tenths of a percent over the same opponent. That he coasted to so huge a victory in the swing state of Virginia now has to send a message to red-state Democratic congressmen: Obama may be able to survive in the deep water into which he is leading his party, but you can’t.
| 4 November 2009, 5:39 pm |
As I pointed out drawing too many conclusions from two odd year State elections where state issues are primarily concerns can be very misleading. And the Republicans who did win in Virginia and New Jersey did so by moving to the center and keeping away from Sarah Palin and the teabaggers. If Sarah Palin is considered a drawback here in generally conservative Virginia, there are going to be few states where she is a plus.
| 4 November 2009, 5:58 pm |
If Democratic bosses in Gene’s congressional annointed a pro-life, tax-cutting, AGW-denier, would Gene call him a “moderate”?
I don’t even know what this means. Besides I live in DC and don’t have a Congressional representative.
| 4 November 2009, 5:59 pm |
All elections are, to an extent, a referendum on the Government. To think otherwise is silly. The size of the extent is the issue and many electors do seem to have concerns about ObamaCare.
| 4 November 2009, 6:00 pm |
Besides I live in DC and don’t have a Congressional representative.
I should have known that. I guess I assumed you lived out in Christianist-dominated Virginia.
| 4 November 2009, 6:04 pm |
The size of the extent is the issue and many electors do seem to have concerns about ObamaCare.
Whethet or not it had anything to do with ObamaCare, Our President’s program grows, with each passing week, more difficult to pass. That’’s what he gets for dithering.
| 4 November 2009, 6:09 pm |
Mesquito, I live in Arlington Virginia, right across the Potomac River from DC. Perhaps you confused me with Gene.
Note: Northern Virginia is like the rest of the Washington Metropolitan area, a collection of surbanities, who mostly come from some place else. It is not until you get out around Manassas, where the first major battle of the Civil War was fought, that you find large numbers of native Virginians.
| 4 November 2009, 6:28 pm |
Note: Northern Virginia is like the rest of the Washington Metropolitan area, a collection of surbanities, who mostly come from some place else. It is not until you get out around Manassas, where the first major battle of the Civil War was fought, that you find large numbers of native Virginians.
You mean “the real Virginia.”
| 4 November 2009, 7:35 pm |
That’s one way of looking at Gene. Most people in the Viriginia subrebs of DC, regardless of being Democrat or Republican, are quick to identify themsevles as being from Northern Virginia, lessen folks think they might be well, (gasp) Southerners.
It really is a Caste setup.
I do enjoy the way political parties spin elections, any loss is always down to specific local issues and any victory is a reflection of the national mood etc.
This time round supporters of both parties are adopting both positions simultaneously wrt NY-23 on the one hand and the Virginia & New Jersey gubernatorial races on the other.