As most of you know, or at least should have known, last Tuesday, the 4th was Election Day. It was an off-election year, meaning it was mostly just local elections. However, there were two gubernational elections and one semi-national (semi-important election). Of course I am talking about the Virginia and New Jersey’s Governors race and New York’s 23rd Congressional district race. Also, in Maine, there was a vote to approve of gay marriage; however, the voters turned it down and gay marriage is still illegal in Maine (I will not get into the details in this blog post). There were also elections in all of the other states too but I feel like these were the most important issues that came about.
Contrary to popular belief, the two Governors’ races actually mean a lot for the upcoming elections in 2010 and 2012. Both of these races were won by Republicans (I will get into the details momentarily) which could potentially be a good sign come 2010 and 2012 for the GOP in national races.
Starting with New York’s 23rd Congressional district, which stretches from Oswego County all the way up north to Clinton County. This election was a special election because the former Congressman, John M. McHugh (Republican) resigned to become the United States Secretary of the Army on September 21, 2009. Our Governor David Patterson declared that there must be a special election to fill the vacancy. There were no primary elections for the candidates. The candidates are as followed: Bill Owens (Democrat), Doug Hoffman (Conservative) and Driedre Scozzafava (Republican). Three days before the election, Scozzafava dropped out of the race and supported Owens. However, even with her dropping out of the race, she still got 5.5% of the vote which if the voters of that district did not vote for her, Mr. Hoffman would have won because he got 45.2% of the vote. So, Bill Owens is now the Congressman for the 23rd Congressional district of New York. I have yet to look into any of his ideas or plans but his win was a real shock to the district because Republicans have controlled that district since 1873.
One of the most highly anticipated elections of 2009 was the race for Virginia Governor. Current Governor, Tim Kane (Democrat) was not able to run for re-election due to term limits established by the Virginia Constitution. The two candidates for this contested race were: Creigh Deeds (Democrat) and Bob McDonnell (Republican). Mr. McDonnell won the race with 58.65% of the vote. As a note, Bob McDonnell was the former United States Attorney General. Mr. McDonnell’s campaign was focused on economic, transportation, and public safety. One big proposal that Mr. McDonnell hopes to see come about is the job incentives, which is in hopes to boost tourism in Virginia. He is also pro-life and is supportive of drilling off-shore for oil. Also, one really interesting thing about Mr. McDonnell his thesis in 1989 at Regents University was titled The Republican Party’s Vision for the Family: The Compelling Issue of the Decade. If you wish to learn more about Bob McDonnell check out his website (where I got the information): http://www.bobmcdonnell.com/
In New Jersey, there was a much more highly contested election than in Virginia. There were three main candidates: Chris Christie (Republican), Jon Corzine (Democrat and Incumbent), and Chris Daggett (Independent). Much to the surprise of most people, Chris Christie won the election with 49.1% of the vote. Christie is the first Republican elected statewide in twelve year and he is the former United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey. He has received high praise for his convictions while being a lawyer of public corruption. The most notable conviction of he was a part of was the 2006 charges against former New Jersey Senate President John A. Lynch, Jr. which was about mail fraud and tax evasion. Christie is pro-life, opposes New Jersey’s proposal of medical marijuana bill, pro-gun, strong supporter of state granting tax credits to parents who send their children to private schools, anti-illegal immigration, and is in favor of low taxes. To learn more about Governor-elect Chris Christie and to see where I got my information, check out: http://www.christiefornj.com/home.html
With the two gubernational elections this past Tuesday, the Republican Party is hoping for some of that “change” in their favor in 2010 and 2012. It is clear that Virginia and New Jersey were quick to change their stances from the previous elections where they elected Democrats. It might also be clear that the majority of Americans are finally realizing that “hope” and “change” sound nice but there has actually been little to none shown. The GOP can and will hope that President Obama and the rest of his cronies continue to go back on promises. Unfortunately, this also means that this country will continue to pile on the debt until 2010 or 2012 when the GOP starts to regain what was lost. 2009 is a good indicator to what will happen in the upcoming elections, and President Obama should be nervous if he would like another term.
As for the two new Governors, I hope they stick to the Republican cause and I wish them the best of luck. Personally, I feel that Bob McDonnell is one of the best Republicans and one of the only true Republicans we have left.
Keuka College is a hobo-college. Only fools would actually attend! Go to a real school, like Dartmouth College or Colgate University. Other than your school, your political standings are respectable. Keep it up, Kraig Connor
ReplyDeleteThese elections mean NOTHING.... ZERO... NADA. In fact in terms of the national picture, it should be somewhat of a loss because the GOP lost a seat in congress, a seat that had been held by the GOP since the civil war. seats in the senate and house are much, much more important in my opinion than gubernatorial races. Personally, we can't indicate anything from this race in terms of the national picture and what is coming up in 2010 and 2012. Each race was unique in its own way, with a different set of circumstances in each one, with different state issues that voters were concerned about. I think we'll have to wait until 2010 to see if the GOP has a shot at 2012. but from 2 governor's races, you can't make an indication at what the future holds at all. Its too early to tell.
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