Democrat Wins Florida U.S. House Race

[Syrinx]

Source: Wall Street Journal

BOCA RATON, Fla. — Democratic state Sen. Ted Deutch has handily won the first U.S. House race since Congress passed President Barack Obama's massive health care overhaul.

With 43 percent of precincts reporting, Mr. Deutch had 62 percent of the vote compared to 36 percent for Republican Ed Lynch late Tuesday.

The Associated Press called the race about two hours after polls closed.

The 44-year-old Mr. Deutch had faced underdog Lynch in the special election to replace retiring Democratic U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler.

Lynch sought to make the race a referendum on the health care bill in District 19, where about 40 percent of voters are senior citizens. But he had a difficult task — Democrats outnumber Republicans in the South Florida district by more than two-to-one.

Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303695604575182761256978240.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLENexttoWhatsNewsTop

[FrenchieCat]

1. Yeah!

[MUAD_DIB]

32. Sorry, it can't be happening.

Pretty Boy Brown changed all that. Only Republicans are going to win from here on out.

:sarcasm:

[No Elephants]

60. You can't compare this district with a statewide race in Massachusetts.

In this Florida district, Democrats outnumber Republicans by more than two to one. Plus, the number of seniors in the district (40%) is way out of proportion to the country as a whole. Seniors vote--and Democratic seniors remember life under Democrats like FDR, JFK and LBJ. (Damned liberals!)

This guy won by a very comfortable margin, but not by more than two to one.

In Massachusetts (statewide), voters registered "unenrolled" outnumber both Democrats and Republicans.

[happygoluckytoyou]

42. IN A RELATED STORY-- f'ing health care, what next? education? teabaggers ask madness to end ! ! ! !

[eleny]

2. Just heard it on Rachel Maddow's show! K&R!

P.S. First election since HCR was passed.

I guess Floridians weren't that angry about HCR.

[No Elephants]

59. It's not a statewide race. Democrats outnumber Republicans in this district by

MORE THAN two to one. Theoretically, this guy should have won by even more than he did.

[leftynyc]

81. Let's see

Wexler won the district with 65% of the vote. Here an unknown, non-incumbent, running on the Obama platform ran against a teabagger howling against the health care vote and he won with over 62% of the vote. Tell me, just what margin would have impressed you? Or are you of the pepetually cranky division of the Democratic party?

[eleny]

89. The talk shows were saying that Wexler thought there would be an upset

So it didn't seem like a done deal.

[vanboggie]

102. self delete

[Jade Fox]

3. Alright then!

[DainBramaged]

4. HIP HIP HOORAY

I am sorry that Robert Wexler retired, he was a good man, but I am glad our candidate won, let's see what FAUX has to say about it (que crickets).

[AlbertCat]

92. I am sorry that Robert Wexler retired,

He didn't retire...

from Wiki:

Wexler resigned from Congress effective the evening of January 3, 2010, to become president of the Washington-based Center for Middle East Peace and Economic Cooperation.

[Scurrilous]

5. Great news.

:thumbsup:

[ffr]

6. Democrat Wins Florida House Race

Source: Yahoo News

Proof positive that polls are full of cr*p! Democrats get things done and Americans know it.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100414/ap_on_el_ho/us_congress_wexler_s_seat

[Sancho]

7. I hope it's the first of many!

Grayson for Governor!

[BrklynLiberal]

8. ..but...but...but I thought the Democrats had met their Waterloo????????

[Ken Burch]

14. If they did, apparently it sounded like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85yMOPKR94M

[BrklynLiberal]

18. Wow! I had never seen that video. Now I see where the ending of "Mamma Mia" came from.

I did not appreciate the "tribute" at the time...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTCT6J2hO9M

[hobbit709]

23. You have to remember there was a winner at Waterloo.

It just wasn't Napoleon

[quiet.american]

9. Woot! Way to go, new Congressman Deutch!

:kick: :kick: :kick: :kick: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :applause: :applause: :applause: :applause:

(And not for nothing, but note how Lynch, the far-distant GOP loser of the race, gets most of the ink in an article announcing that Deutch won. Unbelievable.)

[chollybocker]

36. A +

P = Propaganda

;

[totodeinhere]

10. This is a good win but it doesn't prove that polls are full of crap.

This outcome was widely predicted in a district where Democrats outnumber Republicans by two to one. There was no poll showing that the Republican would win that race.

[DallasNE]

35. Deutch Came Within 3% Of What Obama Got

That is the real story. So much for the claim that the Republican base is fired up and the Democrats are down in the dumps. Either that or the Republican ran a terrible campaign. This was a very solid win, any way you want to cut it.

[Tempest]

52. Exactly!

If a broad group of Americans were mad at the health care bill and stimulus package as the conservatives and MSM leads us to believe, it would show up mostly in a Democratic district.

It didn't happen so it stands to reason the tea baggers do not represent a broad group of Americans.

[Stevepol]

54. With hand-counted paper ballots, the margin would have been substantially greater.

[Name removed]

11. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[onehandle]

12. You need to put the actual headline and up to four paragraphs of the story in the message. nt

As per LBN rules.

[Judi Lynn]

26. Gee, Lynch seemed to have such great ideas, too! From your link:

~snip~
Lynch had hoped public disdain for the health care bill and low congressional approval ratings would help him upset Deutch, widely seen as the front-runner. He sought to do what Republican Scott Brown did in Massachusetts when he won the Senate seat held for nearly a half-century by Democrat Edward M. Kennedy.

Lynch lambasted the health care overhaul as a government takeover and the gutting of Medicare, while Deutch told voters it would provide immediate relief.

Lynch had also slammed Obama's stimulus bill as doing little to help the economy and called the president's timetable to withdraw troops from Iraq "moronic."

Thanks for the big, loud laugh, ffr.

Glad to see this good Democrat will be filling Wexler's shoes, hope he wins in November.

Welcome to D.U. :hi:

[Dappleganger]

13. Fuck yeah!

[Alcibiades]

15. This PROOVES All Americans love health care reform!

If it was reasonable to claim that the election of Scott Brown in Massachusetts proved that Americans hated health care reform, this this surely indicates that American voters are happy with the president and Democratic majorities in Congress.

[jmowreader]

20. Brown's election proved we ran a shit candidate

When you refuse to campaign until the last moment and refer to Curt Schilling as "another Yankee fan," expect to lose an election in Massachusetts.

[Alcibiades]

29. I agree completely

she treated the nomination as a coronation. One candidate in one state winning a senate race by 5% does not undo the nationwide mandate of a president who won by eight million votes, but the press has acted as if it did, and even claimed that Republicans had won every major election since 2008, thereby revealing that the American people supposedly had buyer's remorse.

But, of course, they will make no such generalizations about these results.

[No Elephants]

76. Yes, she was. But see Reply 71. I would not minimize this victory, but I would

not equate it with Brown's or minimize Brown's either. All is not lost, but all is not won, either. We have to work hard and donate for mid-terms.

[ieoeja]

85. Part of the anger at Democrats in the Brown case was ...

... that they had failed to pass healthcare by that time.

It's a pretty good bet people angry about healthcare not being passed at that time aren't going to vote for those promising to repeal the healthcare now that it has passed.

[MGKrebs]

93. She was 30 points ahead less an a month out.

She was doing what any candidate that far ahead would do- don't rock the boat.

And why would anyone think an offhand comment about Curt Shilling would tip an election?

I blame Tim Kaine. The DNC was essentially without leadership until January 22. The DNC should have been able to step in and throw the big resources in there that became necessary during January and they didn't. (Frankly, Pres. Obama never should have tapped him for the job.)

[quiet.american]

96. I like Kaine, but agree w/your comments. Steele may be a buffoon, but his name is out there.

A DU'er earlier posted a Pew Poll 12-question quiz on politics; in reading over the results gathered from those who'd taken the poll, it was not surprising to see that many DEMOCRATS don't even know who the Chair of the DNC is, but they do know who Michael Steele is. And I blame Kaine for that. He may have been "working behind the scenes," but for the first year of the Obama presidency, he seemed to be completely missing in action. Steele's non-stop nonsense about the Democratic Party was not effectively rebutted by the DNC for far too long. Internet ads and emails that preach to the choir don't get it done.

As for Coakley, meh. The fire in the belly certainly seemed to be missing in her case. The whole thing still rankles. (And I'm not even from Massachusetts.)

[MGKrebs]

101. He was missing in action.

His term as Governor didn't end until Jan. 21. For a whole year he was both a Governor and DNC Chair. I can't blame him for prioritizing the Governorship, but what genius thought that the DNC would succeed with that arrangement?

Hopefully he will redeem himself, and maybe that election in Florida is a sign of things to come.
I guess I miss Howie.

[Puzzler]

16. GOP spin: "nothing to see here, move on..."

"... this race had nothing to do with Obama and health care"

On the other hand, if the GOP candidate had won...


(I'm just guessing the GOP and MSM reactions, and I'm sure I won't be very wrong)

[Skink]

17. What if went up against that Massachusetts guy?

that guy?

[oasis]

19. booyah

:woohoo:

[Autonomy]

21. Whoa, whoa, whoa! This does not help the narrative

that Republicans are coming back from the dead in 2010! We can't have this. I call a do-over.

[Hippo_Tron]

22. This was Robert Wexler's district so it's not totally unexpected, but still good news

Also it's promising to see that it was a landslide.

[AzNick]

24. Let get fired up!!!!!!!! n/t

[JI7]

25. so media isn't going to report this since a Dem won ?

[Historic NY]

27. Congratulations Florida & Congressman Deutch, good job.

[livingonearth]

28. Foolish Rush Limbaugh deluded himself on this one.

Today on Limbaugh's show he had a caller talking about this race. Limbaugh put in a plug for Lynch, egotistically laughing as if his influence would be the magic to put the Republican over the top. Hey Rush, not as influential as you think you are, are you? Fool!

[mvd]

30. K&R; let it be a signal

:thumbsup:

[Xenotime]

31. Yea!! More seats for us!!!

Re-thugs are so done this year.

[Bleacher Creature]

33. Will Drudge have his siren up for this news???? NT

[Zambero]

50. No, it's all about the UK and Brown's surge in the polls

No mention of the Florida blowout. (Surprise!)

[DonCoquixote]

34. HUZZAH

Please remember this when people joke about getting rid of Florida.

Now to get Akex Sink and Kendrick Meek in office >:)

[Corey_Baker08]

37. Congrats State Senator Elect Deutch!! Why Have Not Heard About This in the Media Though?...

:hi:

:party: :party: :party: :party: :party: :party: :party: :party: :party: :party: :party: :party: :party: :party: :party:

I am absolutely sure you will represent the constituents of the great state of Florida's 19th district very well, and I do agree that with 40% of the population in this district being Senior Citizens than neither this election, the 2010 midterm elections, nor the 2012 Presidential Election will be a referendum on the health care bill, I am just less than impressed with the media coverage of this special election in which I didn't know about until I got a DU and I watch the major news organizations quite often throughout the day. What is the MSM afraid they won't have anything to discuss if it is in fact revealed that voters (in this case senior citizen voters) are NOT in fact wanting to overthrow the Govt due to healthcare reform?

[ccharles000]

38. yay

[alp227]

39. A Democratic victory for a change.

After Chris Christie, Bob McDonnell, and Scott Brown, comes finally a Democratic victory. WOOHOO!!!!

[bamacrat]

40. Well hopefully that trend will continue..

I mean we are going to lose a lot of seats but if the pukes run on an anti healthcare platform then maybe our loses will not be as bad. I would love to see all those teabags explode when they don't gain control. Boehner may actually naturally turn red.

[Indi Guy]

41. Unfortunately for us - Wall St. divorced itself from Main St. long ago...

All we get now is the "Tinkle Down."

[No Elephants]

66. They had marital problems but TR and FDR had tamed Wall Street for a long time.

Unfortunately, the safeguards we had in place began to be dismantled by both Republicans and Democrats, starting with the Reagan administration.

[Indi Guy]

43. Read all & Judge for Yourself - I'm getting allot of Mixed Messages Here...

from: The Palm Beach Post http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/state/april-13-special-election-to-replace-wexler-a-503851.html?viewAsSinglePage=true

For South Florida voters who sent liberal Democrat Robert Wexler to Washington seven times, this month's special congressional election offers a chance to stay the Democratic course or deliver an upset even more improbable than Republican Scott Brown's January win in a Massachusetts special Senate election.

America's first U.S. House race of 2010 pits Wexler's chosen successor, Democratic state Sen. Ted Deutch of Boca Raton, against Republican Ed Lynch and no-party candidate Jim McCormick.

Early voting begins Monday and the general election is April 13 in a heavily Democratic District 19, which includes parts of Palm Beach and Broward counties. Wexler left the $174,000-a-year job in January to head a Middle East think tank.

Deutch isn't known for the "fire-breathing liberal" style of Wexler, but promises a similar voting record.

He supports the sweeping health-care legislation approved last month over unanimous Republican House and Senate opposition. He says he would have voted for the $787 billion economic stimulus bill and cap-and-trade limits on carbon emissions in the House last year. He supports immigration reform that includes a "path to citizenship" for many illegal immigrants. He's for "reasonable" gun control.

­Lynch and McCormick are both running on fairly conservative platforms.

Lynch, who got 27.2 percent when he challenged Wexler in 2008, favors repealing the health-care law and starting over with elements such as limits on malpractice awards in lawsuits.

First-time candidate McCormick would gut much of the law, but keep some provisions such as closing the "doughnut hole" gap in Medicare prescription drug coverage and allowing young adults to remain on their parents' insurance policies.

Lynch and McCormick oppose the stimulus and favor tax cuts to spur the economy. They call cap and trade a business-crippling tax hike. Both take a hard line against illegal immigration and for gun rights.

District 19 is 50.9 percent Democratic and 24.2 percent Republican, with 24.9 percent of voters belonging to no party or minor parties. The district voted 65 percent for Barack Obama in 2008.

But President Obama's approval numbers have slipped and ratings for the Democratic Congress have plunged. Polls show seniors — who are about 40 percent of the District 19 electorate and a larger share of those who actually vote — are the strongest opponents of the new health care bill, perhaps distrusting its promise to preserve Medicare benefits while squeezing $500 billion in savings from the senior health program.

Lynch also says District 19's large Jewish population should be concerned by the Obama administration's stance toward Israel and its recent criticism of Israel for planning to build homes in a disputed area of Jerusalem.

Lynch wants the special election to be a referendum on Obama, with Deutch as a proxy for the president.

"The people in our district, just like the people in America, believed in the hopey-changey thing. And now they realize that there were a lot of smoke and mirrors," says Lynch. "Obama has proven that he's no friend of Israel. He's proven that he's no friend to the seniors. And this is a very senior, very Jewish district...We've seen a lot of buyer's remorse with this president."

Deutch doesn't shy from supporting Obama, but says that's not the focus of the election.

"At the end of the day, this is a congressional election. People in this district, they're not electing a president, they're not electing a cabinet or anything else. They're voting for the person who's going to be their voice in Washington," said Deutch. He says his four years in Tallahassee have proven his ability to deliver for his constituents.

Deutch says the health care bill won't cut benefits for seniors and will help them by closing the doughnut hole and eliminating co-pays for routine check-ups and screenings.

Deutch has long been active in pro-Israel causes and sponsored legislation in Tallahassee barring investment of state pension funds in investments that benefit Iran. He commends the Israeli government for making "dramatic concessions" for peace and says the Palestinians "have continued to escalate violence."

Asked if the Obama administration's handling of the Jerusalem housing issue deserves criticism, Deutch said, "My hope is that we can move beyond this. I think that it's just not helpful for these debates to play out in public and I hope that going forward the discussions between these two great allies (the U.S. and Israel) don't get in the way of our continuing focus on reaching global consensus to crack down on Iran."

McCormick, a Republican until he switched to no party affiliation a few months ago, is hoping to capitalize on dissatisfaction with both parties.

"I don't believe in either party. The problem is I believe they're both two sides of the same coin and nothing has changed...Voters need to know that a vote for either of the other candidates is a vote for partisanship," says McCormick.

But a win by Lynch or McCormick appears even more unlikely than Brown's win in heavily Democratic Massachusetts.

While Brown was a decided underdog, he had been elected six times to the Massachusetts legislature and once to local office. He also raised and spent more money than Democrat Martha Coakley. Lynch and McCormick have never been elected to office and both are running low-budget campaigns.

Lynch has sought to nationalize the contest, but groups like the National Republican Congressional Committee and FreedomWorks, a key player in the tea party movement, have not gotten involved.

Lynch also brings some baggage into the race, including more than $1.3 million in federal tax liens, which were highlighted by his GOP primary foes and again in a mailer by Deutch's campaign. Lynch since 2008 has said he owes nothing and is merely awaiting paperwork to vindicate his claim. The IRS won't comment.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/state/april-13-special-election-to-replace-wexler-a-503851.html?viewAsSinglePage=true

[Overseas]

44. K&R ! //nt

[pezDispenser]

45. woot! eom

[impik]

46. It means that if we just make sure to GOTV, we'll be fine in November

[flyarm]

47. It is the most democratic district in the state! eom

[Zambero]

49. And Massachusetts is the most Democratic state in the country

or close to it. The conservative mantra has been that Dems are so dispirited and Indie voters so angry over HCR that the GOP would be picking off Dem seats by the truckload, even in long-standing "blue" locales. That prediction seems to have gone up in smoke given the 26-point victory margin in the FL House race, as has the teabaggers' regard for their ex-hero Scott Brown. His victory had as much to do with an abysmally inept Democratic candidate, as opposed to any "backlash".

[No Elephants]

71. Too simplistic.

Yes, Coakley was an awful candidate. My candidate was Congressman Capuano, but he lost to her because she had statewide name recognition and he was known almost only in his district.. And, truth to tell, while he votes the correct way, IMO (no on Iraq and Patriot Act, for example), he does not come across as very dynamic. I love him, but he has no "star quality," like a Kennedy. So, he may have lost, too.

Until Brown, Massachusetts entire delegation was Democratic, though. And they are not all stars. My point is, until Brown, Massachusetts was voting for less than stellar Democrats. It was voting for Democrats, no matter what. (Our Governors are different. The state legislature has so many Democrats it can override any governmental veto, so Governor can become a beauty contest.)

And a lot of Democrats did stay home, even in Boston, which is the most liberal place in the state. In fact, Coakley conceded as soon as she heard the Boston turnout numbers.

[Tempest]

53. And yet he still got within 3 percentage points as Obama

So apparently Democrats aren't all that upset at what's going on like the tea baggers and MSM wants us to believe.

[No Elephants]

64. I agree the media distorts. However, remember that people were a lot more upset

before the health care reform bill passed--even though the bill that passed was not the one they wanted.

Moral: some bill is better for the majority in Congress than no bill, especially if you're spending over a year on it.

Obama is still popular, too. But Democrats in Congress are not, and, I believe, Republicans in Congress are even worse.

[Tempest]

91. Republicans are polling worse than Democrats

Democrat's approval rating is around 40%.
http://pollingreport.com/cong_dem.htm

Repugs are polling around 35%.
http://pollingreport.com/cong_rep.htm

[diane in sf]

48. Great! I liked Wexler--hopefully Deutch will be a progressive as well.

[Enthusiast]

51. Happy day!

Now, let us replace every one of the nay saying assholes!

[DeeDeeNY]

55. But didn't the polls say that a majority of citizens wanted health care reform?

Rethugs kept lying without proof that a majority didn't want it, and in their attempts to convince others, soon started believing their own lies.

[zbdent]

56. so ... will the "liberal media" hype this as much as Brown's win?

I doubt it ...

[Knight Hawk]

57. Here is why

Unfortunately this is no surprise,this is a very deep blue part of the state.The state as a whole is trending conservative.Look at the polls for the upcoming race for Governor.

[DCBob]

58. Mass was "deep blue" too... this result is significant.. the hemmoraghing has stopped..

The loser GOPers appear to have peaked too soon!! Ha!

[No Elephants]

62. Please see Replies 60 and 61.

Never get too complacent--or too defeatist--about any election until the results are final.

[DCBob]

63. Who's "complacent"?? I am still freaking out about the whole situation.. but..

clearly this is a significant turn of events.

[No Elephants]

68. I agree, but I think we have to put it in perspective. Posts on this thread implying that this

is the equivalent of Brown's win in Massachusetts are out of reality.

The midterms are going to be tough. We are going to need to work hard, being neither too optimistic or too pessimistic.

[DCBob]

78. agreed. +1

:thumbsup:

[No Elephants]

61. You really think this one district in a purple state compares with a statewide election to fill Sen.

Kennedy's seat? See also, Reply 60.

[FrenchieCat]

65. What's so sad is that when Republicans win, they use it as a spring board,

and the media helps them big time.

When we win, half of the Democrats poo-poo the win as no big thing,
and the media ain't got shit to say.

It's hard to win in this kind of climate.....and yet we did.
That's a good thing, but so many posters just keep repeating the same thing;
it's not a state, and it's really blue.

Well OK. My reply is that if the district is high percentage seniors,
who are the ones who are supposed to hate the health care bill, so
the fact that we won means something.

Let's build ourselves up, instead of tearing even our wins down....shall we? :shrug:

[No Elephants]

69. Yes, it means something. But equating this with Brown's taking Kennedy's seat is out of reality.

So, rejoice over this (in perspective) and NEVER give up. BUT, be prepared to fight for midterms.

[Loge23]

67. Lynch spent plenty on pushing lies

This is fantastic victory against an obviously well-funded Lynch. Lynch's ads played frequently on local TV and were centered around fear-mongering lies about seniors "losing" benefits.
But what else is to be expected from repukes?
Congrats Ted Deutch!

[Gaedel]

84. Lynch wasn't "well funded"

The national Rep Party refused to support Lynch and he only raised a pittance for the campaign. Rep Deutch outspent him ten-to-one.

[Loge23]

86. I live In the area...

...I didn't see one Deutch commercial on TV, not one.
I did see Lynch's ad multiple times every evening.
Whatever.

[lark]

94. According to msm Lynch got outspent

but according to someone in the district, no Duetch adds were heard but plenty of Lynch's. Do you have actual campaign expenditures to know how much each party spent? Otherwise, it's probably just RW media bias all over again. Millions come out for anti-war marches and msm says few thousand, 1,000 people come out for Tea Party rallies and they say "huge national movement with thousands attending".

[Gaedel]

97. Sun Sentinel article on spending by Deutch and Lynch

http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2010-04-12/news/fl-congress-election-money-20100411_1_congressional-candidate-ted-deutch-special-election-financial-race



April 12, 2010|By Anthony Man, Political Writer

The special election is Tuesday, and Democratic congressional candidate Ted Deutch holds a commanding advantage in contributions, taking in more than $1.5 million since launching his campaign last fall.

His two opponents have raised so little that their entire treasuries would amount to little more than rounding errors in Deutch's campaign checkbook. For every $1 he's raised, opponents Ed Lynch and Jim McCormick have taken in less than 6 cents.

Reports filed with the Federal Election Commission show that Deutch, a lawyer and Democratic state senator from west of Boca Raton, raised $1.35 million in campaign contributions through late March. Since then, he's received at least $160,600 more — nearly double what his opponents have collected in total.



See URL for full article.

[Vermontgrown]

70. How about that message to the repukes.

OOOoo, there going win all these seats back. Lookout. Jump back. HaHaHa. I guess that thing in Massachusetts was just bullshit. Mass was a badly run campaign period.

[No Elephants]

74. It was a badly run campaign--and a lousy candidate-- but no "period."

Please see Reply 71. Also, Replies 60 and 61.

[Lint Head]

72. The Scott Brown Effect.

[Vinca]

73. So where are all the talking heads blabbering about how it's

a referendum on the Republican Party?

[No Elephants]

75. Please see Replies 60, 61 and 71. I don't believe the talking heads, but

I wouldn't slack off until mid-terms are over, either.

[ffr]

95. XXactly!!

Let's all say it in unison,

NO MORE REPUBLICANS!

[SemperEadem]

77. Well done, Mr. Deutch and congrats, District 19

it'll be interesting to hear the deafening silence from
the MSM when it doesn't turn this into
an indictment of the thugs and their lynch mob party.

[Javaman]

79. Another fine example of the ball licking tea baggers "juggernaut"..

:spray: :rofl:

[marshall]

80. That was one seat we couldn't afford to lose

Stability is ahead.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

82. Deutch is a good guy.

Goes a little overboard on the Israel issue, but other than that, a solid Dem and a nice (if somewhat soft spoken) guy. We'll be represented well. Although the result of this election was a foregone conclusion if there ever had been--my district is solid blue, so I doubt there was ever any question that he'd win (especially with Wexler's backing).

[defendandprotect]

83. Good news that it's a Dem win . . . what it actually portends for Democrats nation wide?

[KansDem]

87. Will the media sound off on this like they did with the Massachusetts senate race?

I think not...

[humbled_opinion]

88. It is welcome news

I don't think that Democrats should be afraid of losing in NOV in fact it would be wonderful to see gains that way we can put all this crap spread by the right to rest once and for all.

[Democat]

90. The right wing media will ignore Democratic wins and support Republicans

As usual.

[treestar]

98. Cue news reports on how this is a referendum on Obama

Oh, wait.

[ObamaKerryDem]

99. Yay!!

:bounce: :kick:

So much for the passage of HCR being "political suicide" for Dems. Guess that GOP "winning streak" reached its peak with Brown. :evilgrin:

[mwooldri]

100. AKA "The Democratic Party successfully held onto a US Congressional Seat".

Nevertheless this is good news...

A race where there are no incumbents, a race where if there was outrage over health care reform and how the government was being run the opposition could have easily stole the seat.

The opposition did not steal the seat. The party who held the seat previously retained it. And quite well too.

Yes, the MA Senate election was a bad showing by the Democratic Party. But it did do something, it provided a wake up call that Democrats cannot rest on any laurels, as the opposition hound-dogs will always be yapping at their heels.

Every election is a tough battle. Tougher if you're up against an incumbent. Even tougher if the constituents' views are pretty much aligned with the incumbents. Dragging up some dirt on the Republicans should really help Democrats... and if certain individuals run for the Presidency then I can easily see Obama winning handsomely, plus... setting the tone for 2016 for another Democratic President.