The tradition of gubernatorial loss in Virginia following a Party's Presidency victory the prior year goes back to Reagan. 1989. Democrat Terry McAuliffe was the latest candidate to fall to this usual flow of American electoral politics.
On Tuesday night, like most of you, I expect, I was wiped out. Virginia lost. New Jersey endangered.
Today, I am thinking we didn't do as badly as I felt.
As Rachel Maddow pointed out last night, Biden made history on Tuesday.
Since the 1980's, the party which has won the Presidency the previous year has lost the governorships of both Virginia and New Jersey during the first year of that Presidency.
On Tuesday, Dems lost only one gubernatorial contest, not two, during the first year of the Biden Presidency.
Virginia where we lost, but barely lost. And we won in New Jersey, in an almost unprecedented victory by an incumbent Governor.
Take this in – the reality is that in the 2021 election on Tuesday, Biden beat almost 40 years of history following his Presidential win.
I think we've have seen a media panic over the Virginia loss, and a Party Panic as well. We have been beating ourselves up since Tuesday. Why not? After all, we are Democrats.
Here are some other Democratic successes on Tuesday night.
New Jersey. First time since 1977 a presiding Governor won Re-election in New Jersey. Closer than expected but Phil Murphy won.
Boston. First woman. First Asian American. 2/3 of the Votes. 36 year old Progressive Michelle Wu.
Ohio.
Detroit.
New York.
New York Times. “For the first time in nearly three decades, all three of New York City's citywide elected officials will be from the same borough: Brooklyn.
On Tuesday, Eric Adams (Bedford-Stuyvesant) won the mayor's race, and Brad Lander (Park Slope) was elected city comptroller.
Jumaane Williams (Flatbush) was re-elected public advocate, an office he has held since 2019."
Plus this.
I hope you will share this.
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