Free Republic

There is no crime in being up front with honesty and practices of fairness in vote casting when truth replaces theft of honor by deception In the past several years, elections, local, regional and national in particular have seen lawlessness at the voting polls in many areas of these once-squeaky-clean United States. And even when definite proof is available, such as the case in Ohio, where the number of votes for Democrats in the ballot tallies exceeded the total number of all eligible residents, Democrat, Republican, and all other voters registered in that area. A very simple (and simple minded)...

During the 2012 election, and to a lesser extent in the 2010 cycle, it became popular for poll-watchers on the right to dig into the sample data of individual polls, compare that sample available exit polling, and apply some judgment as to whether or not that poll was likely to accurately reflect the results on Election Day. In 2012, however, too many on the right began reflexively engaging in this practice for every poll with the aim of diving preferred results out of an otherwise disappointing poll. A few thoughtless types on the left would shriek, and not without...

A community organization group with ties to labor unions and to George Soros is out with a dramatic get-out-the-vote ad featuring an African-American mother forcing her son to wear a bullet-proof vest in order to protect himself from being shot by police and “vigilantes.”Dream Defenders, the group behind the ad, first gained national attention last year when it held a 31 day protest at the Florida state capitol following George Zimmerman’s acquittal in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin. The group’s executive director is Phillip Agnew who is paid as an organizer by Service Employees International Union, one of the...

If the New Hampshire race is like others in some respects, it is unique in at least one. Brown, 55, moved to the state to run. The race is his third for the Senate in five years. Shaheen, 67, is a known political commodity in New Hampshire. She was elected, to this Senate seat, in 2008 when Obama won the state. "She's won in a wave and lost in a wave," says former Rep. Frank Guinta, a Republican. "I think she's as susceptible as anyone is." That view — that even a well-established politician can lose if enough voters sour...

The Washington Post's Election Lab -- our statistical model designed to predict outcomes of the various races on the ballot this fall -- is currently showing Republicans with a 95 percent chance of winning the Senate. While most political handicappers suggest Republicans have an edge in the battle for the Senate majority, few would say it is as heavily tilted toward the GOP as Election Lab. And, even other statistical models -- kept by FiveThirtyEight and the New York Times -- project far more caution about the likely outcome in 25 days time. Nate Silver's model pegs it at a...

Despite being an extremely popular two-term governor, Republican Mike Rounds has lost steam in the race for a U.S. Senate seat, according to the latest SurveyUSA poll. With just four weeks until the Nov. 4 general election, Rounds appears to have 35 percent of the vote, down 4 percent from a month ago. Independent Larry Pressler, a former Republican, is within the margin of error with 32 percent, gaining 7 perent from the last SurveyUSA poll. He is followed by Democrat Rick Weiland with 28 percent and the self-proclaimed "conservative" candidate Gordon Howie with just 3 percent. Democrats and their...

The 4th Congressional District race between Mia Love (R) and Doug Owens (D) is tightening a little with about 3 weeks to go until election day. The latest UtahPolicy.com poll conducted by Dan Jones and Associates finds Love with a 9-point lead over Owens. 9% are undecided.

Republican Carlos Curbelo holds a slight lead over Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Joe Garcia of Florida, 46-42, in the South Florida congressional district 26, according to a new survey conducted by the Saint Leo University Polling Institute. The result falls within the poll’s margin of error and the race should be considered a dead heat. Of the 435 U.S. House of Representatives’ contests in this year’s mid-term elections, there only about 30 that are hotly contested for control of the chamber, and the Curbelo-Garcia race in South Florida is one of them. “Congressman Garcia is in a weaker position than...

(VIDEO-AT-LINK)A spate of new Senate projections shows Republicans widening the electoral map and increasing their chances of a GOP takeover. On Monday, the The Washington Post's Election Lab forecast showed Republicans with a 94% chance of winning the Senate and a 99% chance of maintaining control of the House. The New York Times is similarly projecting a Republican takeover in the Senate. According to the Times' statistical forecast, the GOP currently holds a 64% chance of reclaiming the Senate....

Is there anything more pathetic than a party without a message – other than: "The economy sucks and we're not Obama"? Imagine what it would be like if everyone took the Republican approach to messaging: "Join us for Sunday worship." Why? "We'll get back to you on that after we check with our focus group." "Shop at Macy's – We're not Gimbels!" "Eat at Joe's – you probably won't get ptomaine poisoning! No offense to Al's or Fred's." This should be a banner year for Republicans – surpassing even 2010. Democratic candidates would rather be photographed with the President of...

Republicans have a 60.4% chance of winning a majority.

Democrats’ strategy for keeping their ObamaCare losses to a minimum in the 2014 elections is a combination of denial and obfuscation. The “denial” part consists of loudly insisting that nobody is complaining about ObamaCare any more, so it must not be that big of a political liability for them. The fact that people across the country are complaining about ObamaCare is irrelevant; this is a Jedi mind trick, not a reasoned argument. As for the obfuscation part, well, that’s simple: the Administration contrived to keep 2015 insurance premiums under wraps until after the election. The new and improved HealthCareDotGov is...

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A federal appeals court on Tuesday reinstated Texas' tough voter ID law for the November election, which the U.S. Justice Department had condemned as the state's latest means of suppressing minority voter turnout. The ruling by the New Orleans-based 5th Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily blocks last week's ruling by U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos in Corpus Christi, who determined the law unconstitutional and similar to a poll tax designed to dissuade minorities from voting. The 5th Circuit did not rule on the merits of the law; instead, it determined it's too late to change...

Kansas Democratic gubernatorial candidate Paul Davis said Tuesday that the list of top Republicans in the state has increased from 100 to 500 members. Davis made the announcement at a news conference on Tuesday, accompanied by the leaders of the group of Republicans who support Davis and oppose Republican Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback, according to the Lawrence Journal-World. The conference was to highlight the support Davis has begun to receive from 180 ex lawmakers and 360 educators, community leaders, and business leaders who are part of the group, Republicans for Kansas Values. As TPM previously noted, in July the more...

The United States has a long history of voter fraud that has been documented by historians and journalists. Such fraud can make the difference in a close election, and we have many elections – particularly at the local and state level – that are decided by a very small number of votes. Every American citizen who is eligible should be able to vote, but it is equally important that every citizen’s vote not be diluted or stolen through fraud, especially fraud that could change the outcome of an election. Election integrity is fundamental to securing free and fair elections, which...

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee and a conservative kingmaker, is doubling her efforts in Louisiana to get retired Air Force Col. Rob Maness elected to the U.S. Senate over GOP Rep. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and incumbent Democrat Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA). “Those folks in Washington should visit Louisiana like I have recently,” Palin told Breitbart News exclusively when asked what to make of the GOP establishment efforts to push Maness out of the race. “The momentum, enthusiasm, and dedication for Rob Maness is real, and I've seen it – along with a few live...

Mark Levin endorses Rob Maness for Senate

John Warner, the retired Republican senator, has cut a strong testimonial commercial endorsing Virginia Democratic Sen. Mark Warner for reelection, becoming the latest former member of the chamber to make an appearance in this year’s elections. The younger Warner challenged the elder Warner, no relation, back in 1996. But they became closer over the years and developed a good working relationship when Mark Warner became governor in 2002. Mark Warner picked up his seat six years ago upon John Warner’s retirement. This is the first time John Warner, now 87, has either endorsed a Democrat for elected office in Virginia...

We are now three weeks to Election Day, which means we are deep into another round of the voting wars—the ceaseless legislative, legal and regulatory battle over which Americans can vote, and when and where and with what paperwork they must do so. Here's a modest proposal: How about we finally call off the fight? Forget it, you say. There is no way the Republican Party and conservative movement, which have invested so much time and effort in restricting the franchise to serve partisan ends, are going to give up now. But what if there are some good reasons why...

Sen,. Mark Warner (D-Va.) on Monday had the exact debate he did not want to have, one focused on his own role in talking about jobs for the children of a key Democratic state senator. The Post reports: Democratic Sen. John Warner and Republican challenger Ed Gillespie shake hands before debating on TV at the studios of WCVE in Richmond. (Photo by Timothy C. Wright/For the Washington Post.) In the pair’s third and final campaign debate in Richmond on Monday, the Republican underdog used his very first question as an opportunity to bring up Warner’s recently revealed job talks with...