The election results from last night were somewhat startling: Democrats took the House while the GOP strengthened their lead in the Senate and held onto key governorships. I believe that much of the inconsistencies result from the divided nature of our nation.
In the House, Democrats won many seats, especially those in suburban areas. This will give them the ability to put pressure on the Trump administration and the GOP-controlled Senate. Unfortunately, if they are not careful, they will lose the gains they made tonight in two years if they do not try to govern and instead choose to only obstruct.
@nytimes reporting Democratic gains for House, Republican holds for Senate #midterms2018 #depauljour pic.twitter.com/06iOVdf8AX
— zdcassel (@zdcassel) November 7, 2018
On the other hand, the GOP actually gained seats in the Senate and governorships. I’m not sure about why this happened while the House went to Democrats. It is possible rural voters care more about the messaging of Trump and that gave the GOP the edge. It is also possible many white Americans will vote for racist candidates even if they are afraid to admit it. This is what troubles me so much about this particular situation.
BREAKING: Tester won. The “big” GOP gain in the Senate is now maxed out at +3—with the Dem trailing by only 0.9% in Arizona with 1 million ballots left to count. There’s also a recount in Florida, where the Dem trails by only 0.4%.
The NYT predicts just a +2 GOP gain in the end.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) November 7, 2018
I think the lesson we need to learn from this election is to be firm in your message with a need to reach out to rural areas. I saw in the Florida races the consequences of not keeping true to your policies and left candidates being a non-starter in rural America. If there is to be actual change in America, we on the Left need to keep our principles principled!