Fun question, if you pick just one House race that you could magically have put in the GOP column, which one would you pick?
For me I’d say FL-2, because of the danger Gwen Graham could pose statewide. Runner up MN-8, I think we’d have a much better chance of holding it in 2016 then taking it.
Changing gears, I was just looking at the statewide county by county results in CA. While this top primary 2 crap is unconstitutional and doesn’t seem to be positive for us I do like how it streamlines the results.
Now Pete this will tick you off. You’ve probably gleaned that my opinion of “conservative” democrats is that we should shoot them in the head instead of the liver like the rest of the party. But when an election gives you lemons, make lemonade, it might be crappy, very lightly sweetened lemonade but that’s still better than sucking on a lemon.
The race CA Superintendent of Public Instruction was between 2 rats, incumbent Tom Torlakson a 30+ year veteran of elective office and Marshall Tuck. As an officially “non-partisan” (what a laugh) race no party names appeared on the ballot. Torlakson is a whore for the teacher’s unions.
At least one GOP consultant endorsed Tuck.
http://www.theblaze.com/contributions/in-california-a-democrat-to-support-in-november/
And Daily Kos hated him.
In the closest statewide race, Torlakson won 52%-48%
http://vote2014.sos.ca.gov/returns/maps/superintendent-of-public-instruction/
You can see Tuck won most, but not all of the GOP counties, and by smaller margins than the Republican Ashley Swearengin, who got 46% in the race for Controller.
http://vote2014.sos.ca.gov/returns/maps/controller/
However he did much better in the rat counties than she did, losing LA county by little more than a point. If those GOP counties gave him the same support they gave Ashley Swearengin, he wins.
that is a fascinating race for the analysts to study. many GOP voters left their vote blank rather than vote for Tuck.
7 million votes cast for Controller, only 6 million for Schools race. It shows that theory of trying 2 Dems in a heavy Dem district ... that the Dems aren’t concerned about that scenario playing out very often. Over a period of years, the voting behavior of GOP voters may gradually get used to the idea. But not before redistricting changes the entire situation.