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August 03, 2005
The Ohio - Colorado Connection
I try not to focus too much on DemNotes on the national political picture -- except as it relates specifically to the West or to Colorado. However, I want to point out a critical development last night that many in the mainstream have missed -- but folks in the "blogosphere" have followed very closely.
Yesterday, voters in Ohio's Second Congressional District went to the polls to elect a new member of Congress. They were filling a vacancy in a district that is probably more Republican than any district in Colorado (yes, even the Fifth District).
Democrat Paul Hackett, fresh from a tour of duty in Iraq, came within four points of defeating the Republican. Let me repeat that: the Democrat -- in a District that looks an awful lot like Colorado Springs -- nearly knocked off the Republican chosen one.
While it would have been great for Hackett to win, this is truly a situation where a loss is not devastating to our Party. In fact, before the election, independent commentator Charlie Cook said that a GOP victory of less than five points "should be a very serious warning sign for Ohio Republicans that something is very, very wrong".
Instead, Republicans are celebrating this morning. Good. Let's hope they don't figure out that "something is very, very wrong" for them until the day after election day next November.
In the meantime, this result is a good precursor to some of our Congressional races here in Colorado. In both the 6th CD and the 4th CD, and even to some extent in the 5th CD, it means that 2006 could be a Democratic version of 1994. If that's the case, 2004 in Colorado will have looked like a GOP landslide in comparison.
Just a thought.
Posted by dslater at August 3, 2005 08:39 AM
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Comments
Who's running in CD6? I haven't heard anything about a race shaping up down here in 6 at all.
Posted by: unnamed at August 3, 2005 06:30 PM
I assume you meant the 7th as a real chance for a Dem win. The 6th seems to be far more of a longshot. We had a strong candidate there in 2004 and still was not able to come close to winning. This tells me the Unaffiliated voters there are heavily GOP leaning and specifically on the far-right end of that party's spectrum. The is the only logic which would explain a continued Tancredo win even with all of the fowl things that come the man's mouth.
Posted by: Dan Willis at August 4, 2005 03:59 PM