The win puts Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) in prime position to become the Senate’s next Majority Leader if the GOP can win the six seats it needs to wrest control of the chamber from Democrats.
Republicans gained at least three seats in their bid for control of the Senate as Democrats faced strong political headwinds Tuesday in mid-term elections where discontent with President Obama was a major theme.
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell easily won re-election in Kentucky, and Republicans won Democratic-held seats in Arkansas, South Dakota and West Virginia.
In Kentucky, where Democrats once hoped for a major upset, Democratic challenger Alison Lundergan Grimes conceded to McConnell in a phone call, her campaign said. “This was certainly a hard-fought contest,” McConnell said in claiming victory.
Republican Rep. Shelley Moore Capito won the seat of retiring Democratic Sen. Jay Rockefeller in West Virginia, a state that has drifted Republican in recent elections. She defeated Democrat Natalie Tennant and called her victory “a turning point” for West Virginia.
“It’s the first time in 60 years we have sent a Republican to the U.S. Senate,” Capito said. She is also the first woman the state has elected to the U.S. Senate.
In Arkansas, Republican Tom Cotton ousted Democratic Sen. Mark Pryor. In South Dakota, Republican Mike Rounds defeated Democrat Rick Weiland and an independent campaign by former GOP Sen. Larry Pressler.
Republicans needed a net gain of six seats to win a majority and with it control of the Senate’s agenda, committees and staff — and likely the course of the final two years of Obama’s presidency.
Their victories in Arkansas, South Dakota and West Virginia left Republicans looking for three more gains to claim a Senate majority.
Democrats in much of the country were running on difficult political terrain, with the president’s popularity in the low 40% range in public polls. Obama refrained from campaigning with many Democrats, even in states he won two years ago, out of concern his appearance could hurt more than help.
“I’m so anti-Obama, I can’t even stand it,” said Atlanta voter Pat Epps, who has run an aviation business for nearly 50 years.
Many voters cited discontent with the economy or the direction of the country, signaling difficult terrain for Democratic candidates. But there was unhappiness with incumbents generally.
“I think the Republicans are about as dumb as the Democrats,” restaurant developer Kevin Burke said as he headed to vote in Atlanta’s Buckhead neighborhood. “They don’t seem to have a clear message and they don’t seem to have a clear vision.”
There were 36 Senate races on the ballot, but fewer than a dozen were the most competitive and the focus of both parties’ efforts in an election season that saw more than $4 billion spent on campaigns for Congress.
In one of the most closely watched races, Democratic Sen. Kay Hagan was in a close race with Republican Thom Tillis, speaker of the state House.
Democrats have held the majority since 2006, when George W. Bush, like Obama now, was a lame duck at the mid-point of his second presidential term. In the House, Republicans expected to hold and perhaps expand their majority.
Republican Dave Brat was elected in the Virginia House district that former majority leader Eric Cantor represented until he lost the GOP primary in an upset that sent shockwaves through Washington.
House Speaker John Boehner easily won re-election in Ohio.
There was a chance the Senate outcome might not be known for a while, as Georgia and Louisiana require runoff elections if no candidate tops 50%. The outcome of a close Senate race in Alaska won’t be known until early Wednesday.
“It’s in your hands as to whether or not we can begin to turn this country around. They’ve done a lot of damage,” McConnell said in a final appeal to voters.
Even as some Democrats ran away from Obama in their campaigns, his party was counting on a strong turnout among the coalition of young and minorities that delivered his margins of victory in 2008 and 2012. Obama spent much of Monday and Election Day doing interviews with 14 radio stations aimed at those voters.
In addition to West Virginia, Republicans expected to claim at least two Senate seats where Democrats had chosen to retire — Montana and South Dakota. Among Democratic incumbents, Mark Begich of Alaska and Mary Landrieu of Louisiana faced tough fights to hang on to their Senate seats. So did Democrats Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Mark Udall of Colorado.
While all eyes were on the battle for control of the Senate during the last quarter of Obama’s presidency, some closely-fought races for governor drew national attention.
In Pennsylvania, Democrat Tom Wolf defeated the Republican incumbent Gov. Tom Corbett.
In Florida, Republican Gov. Rick Scott battled for a second term against Democratic challenger Charlie Crist, a former governor and party switcher, in an expensive race that saw the two spend more than $100 million on TV ads. A Democrat hasn’t won the governorship in Florida in two decades.
In Kansas, Republican Gov. Sam Brownback was struggling in a race with Democrat Paul Davis, the state House minority leader. Brownback won passage of the most conservative agenda of any governor in history and was facing backlash over the impact of massive tax and spending cuts and revenue shortfalls.
Chad Trout casts his ballot at the Fairbrook United Methodist Church in Penn Furnace, Pa., as his boys Jonah, 8, left, and Seth, 9, watch on Tues., Nov. 4, 2014.
In Wisconsin, Republican Scott Walker was seeking a second term against Democrat Mary Burke. It was Walker’s third election in four years, as he survived a recall attempt in 2012 after pushing through legislation that stripped teachers and most state workers of collective-bargaining rights.
Other closely watched races saw Republicans trying to hang on to the governor’s office in Maine and Michigan, and Democrats trying to keep control in Colorado, Illinois and Massachusetts.
Colorado’s close races for governor and Senate were an indication of the difficulty Democrats faced in this mid-term election. The state has been trending Democratic, yet Gov. John Hickenlooper and Udall were in uphill races.
“If you’d asked me six months ago if this would be this close, I would’ve laughed in your face,” said Kyle Saunders, a political science professor at Colorado State University.
Contributing: Donovan Slack, David Jackson
McConnell: Parties don’t have to always conflict
The win puts Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) in prime position to become the Senate’s next Majority Leader if the GOP can win the six seats it needs to wrest control of the chamber from Democrats.
See more videoGrimes concedes Kentucky Senate race
Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes gave a heartfelt concession speech in Louisville Tuesday following her projected loss to longtime Sen. Mitch Mcconnell. (Nov. 4)
AP
See more videoNC: Thom Tillis camp hopeful for victory
Republican Senate candidate Thom Tillis eyes victory even as the race in North Carolina is neck and neck.
See more videoElection 2014 in one word
Watch: College students describe the election in one word
Your Take/USA TODAY College
See more videoElection Day may not settle La. Senate race
Sen. Mary Landrieu isn’t certain to know her political fate after the polls close in Louisiana’s tight Senate race. Polls suggest the race might be decided in a December runoff between Landrieu and her chief GOP opponent, Bill Cassidy. (Nov. 4)
AP
See more videoVoting machine problems anger Virginia candidate
Officials with Rep. Scott Rigell and Virginia’s Republican Party are calling for paper ballots after receiving reports of problems with some voting machines. Voters say when they select one candidate, the machines choose another.
VPC
See more videoNunn, Perdue make final push in Georgia’s Senate race
In the tight race for control of the U.S. Senate, all eyes are on Georgia’s Michelle Nunn and David Perdue. Both candidates expressed confidence as voters headed to the polls.
VPC
See more videoFacebook and Twitter play bigger role on Election Day
It’s finally here. Election Day. Find out how social media platforms are getting into the game of politics.
VPC
See more videoVoters turn out early in Takoma Park, Md.
Voters were waiting in line to cast their ballots when the doors opened at a polling place in Takoma Park, Md.
H. Darr Beiser, USA TODAY
See more videoPolling problems turn some voters away in Indiana
Some voters in Floyd County, Indiana were asked to go to different places at the last minute due to problems with voting machines. Others waited in unusually long lines.
VPC
See more videoMcConnell casts vote in Kentucky Senate race
The top Republican in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, casts his vote in Kentucky as he seeks re-election to a sixth term. Rough Cut (no reporter narration).
Video provided by Reuters
Newslook
See more videoAriz. voters looking for change in Washington
Voters heading to the polls in Phoenix say they are tired of the gridlock in Washington and want to see lawmakers start doing their jobs. (Nov. 4)
AP
See more video‘Can I join your party?': Top election pickup lines
Do more than just exercise your right to vote at the polls this Election Day.
(USA NEWS, USA TODAY)
See more videoFL voters deciding tight race for governor
Polls have opened in Florida in what’s described as the most expensive governor’s race ever. Precincts in Eastern Standard Time opened at 7 o’clock this morning, and precints in the Panhandle opened an hour later. (Nov. 4)
AP
See more videoVoters to choose WI governor in tight race
Voters in Wisconsin headed to the polls Tuesday to cast ballots in one of the most closely watched gubernatorial races in the country. Republican Gov. Scott Walker is in a bitter and tight race with Democratic challenger Mary Burke. (Nov. 4)
AP
See more videoLouisiana Senate candidates make final push
Three-term Democratic Senator of Louisiana, Mary Landrieu, makes a final push for votes as she fights for her political life against Republican Rep. Bill Cassidy. Vanessa Johnston reports.
Video provided by Reuters
Newslook
See more videoLast VideoNext Video
Article source: http://www.freep.com/story/news/nation/2014/09/20/nbc-chris-christie-bridge-scandal/15950527/
The win puts Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) in prime position to become the Senate's next Majority Leader if the GOP can win the six seats it needs to wrest control of the chamber from Democrats.
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell votes at Bellarmine University in Louisville, Ky.,...
Top, Top News
0 comments:
Post a Comment