On Washington - Charles E. Cook, Jr.
Washington Hold ‘Em: the New Era in U.S. Politics
Looking toward the 2010 midterm elections, for Republicans there is a bit of the “good news and bad news” dynamic at work. The bad news for Republicans is that their party’s ‘‘brand,’’ or image, is badly tarnished with favorable ratings near record lows and unfavorable ratings near record highs. Critics complain that the party lacks strong leadership, that their message is stale, that the demographic profile of support for the party is ominous, and that the party is badly losing ground among young people, minorities, college graduates, and suburban voters.
The last two elections have been devastating for the once omnipotent GOP. Far beyond simply losing last year’s presidential race, Republicans suffered a net loss of 54 seats in the House of Representatives in the 2006 and 2008 elections, and lost their majority as a result. With the seating of Democrat and former comedian Al Franken of Minnesota, Republicans will have lost 14 Senate seats in that same span, which is the first time that either party has dropped to 40 seats since Jimmy Carter was president. Just four years ago, Republicans held a clear majority—28 governorships to just 22 for Democrats. Today those numbers are reversed.
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