Reasons for optimism in my neck-of-the-woods

[IrateCitizen]

I live in Northern Westchester County, NY. My area was staunchly Republican as recently as 15 years ago, with Democrats often struggling to get one or two seats on the town board.

Last night, our two candidates for re-election were swept into office unopposed, solidifying our all-Democrat town board. While these people may not be as far to the left as I am, they are all very committed people who believe that government should work for the people and be accountable to them.

We also re-elected a progressive Democrat as our state assemblyman. Adam Bradley is a staunch supporter of clean elections reforms, a great advocate for the environment and education, and champions the end of machine politics in Albany.

Also, the former chairman of our county Democratic Party, George Latimer, was elected to an open state assembly speech. I've met George several times and can say that he is, quite simply, one of the best elected officials I've ever come across.

Furthermore, one of the most entrenched politicians we have in NY, State Senator Nick Spano (R-Yonkers) was nearly unseated by an upstart former county legislator Andrea Stewart-Cousins. Spano is used to breezing through elections virtually unopposed.

So, I am depressed about the short-term prospects with national elections. However, from where I stand, there is a shift toward progressive values taking place on a local and state level. And to be quite honest, this is where we have to focus if we have any hope of actually winning, as opposed to hoping at best for a strategic retreat.

Feel free to share your positive stories on the election. Remember -- there are a lot of important races out there besides national elections.

[el_gato]

1. we dumped a republican state house seat in travis county TX

so that was good local news
we also passed light rail

[IrateCitizen]

2. That's good news from TX!

Is your feeling that there is a bit of a progressive backlash against Republican excesses in some areas of Texas? Is your area typically conservative, or did you just have a state rep that was much more conservative than the electorate?

Good news on the light rail too. I know that this has been quite an uphill fight in TX.