Republicans closing in on ninth Senate pickup in Louisiana

The Washington Post ^ | November 28, 2014 | Sean Sullivan

[Clintonfatigued]

The Republican Party stands on the brink of putting an exclamation point on its hugely successful midterm election with the GOP challenger for U.S. Senate in Louisiana well-positioned to dislodge the Democratic incumbent in a runoff election early next month.

A Dec. 6 win by front-running Rep. Bill Cassidy (R) over Sen. Mary Landrieu (D) would give Senate Republicans their ninth pickup and stretch their advantage in the chamber to 54-46 over Democrats when the new Congress is sworn in next year. It would also serve as yet another setback for a once dominant party now in steep decline in the South: Landrieu is the only remaining Democratic statewide elected official in Louisiana, as well as the last Democratic senator from the Deep South.

With little more than a week left, a cavalry of conservative groups has rallied to Cassidy's side, spending millions on the airwaves to help him close strong. Meanwhile, a parade of well-known Republicans from around the country has joined the physician-turned-congressman on the campaign trail.

The bustling GOP bandwagon stands in stark contrast to the Democratic side, where the groups that usually send in reinforcements have declined to spend money for Landrieu, sensing virtually no chance of shaking up a race that looks like Cassidy's for the taking.

"Unless he makes a big mistake, says something stupid or some scandal erupts," Cassidy should win, said University of Louisiana at Monroe political scientist Joshua Stockley.

[Clintonfatigued]

More good news, may Cassidy win overwhelmingly.

[MUDDOG]

It’s over. If she had even the slightest chance, the Post would talking about how close it was.

[Cowboy Bob]

There is a Democrat Senator in Florida who needs to be thrown out of office too.

[Night Hides Not]

More importantly, there are now at least five members of the Tea Party caucus.

[abb]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3232048/posts

Louisiana early voting ends today for Dec. 6 election (Internals show good news)

The (New Orleans) Times Picayune ^ | November 29, 2014 | Julia O’Donoghue

Registered Republicans are making up a larger percentage of early voters at this point. They account for 39 percent of all Dec. 6 early voters so far, and made up just 33 percent of all early voters before the primary election in early November.

The percentage of registered Democrats participating in early voting is down from a month ago. Democrats have made up just 47 percent of early voters so far, compared to 52 percent before Nov. 4. Independent voters are casting early ballots at about the same rate as in the primary — 13 percent — at this point.

With one day left, the percentage of early voters statewide who are black is also down. Black voters made up 33 percent of early voters before the Nov. 4 primary. Currently, they only account for 26 percent of early voters.

[abb]

Landrieu’s lack of money not only prevents her from airing TV ads, it also means there’s no “street money” with which to buy votes, or for vote hauling.

[deport]

Today is the last day of Early Voting for this runoff election. The senator race is the only
statewide race on the ballot. There are a couple of CDs with runoffs and a few municipal races.

[goldstategop]

Yup. Mary Loser will count herself lucky to win 20% of the white vote.

She won’t get that much and it won’t be enough.

[Qwackertoo]

Great. I hope we pick up a few more in 2016. In addition to the White House. Maybe we can turn this damage around faster with control of all three.

[onyx]

Great! I not only want her to lose, I want Cassidy to win in a landslide!

[goldstategop]

The few CDs left in LA should turn Red. The GOP could have 250 House seats when its all over.

Besting their 1946 record.

[alloysteel]

Democrats and liberals in general are pictured as being in “deep decline”, but that is just obfuscating what is going on. I half expect that several “Republicans” will discover, when the operatives get around to applying their opposition research, that yes, maybe the Democrats “have a point”, and make some astonishing and abject surrenders, enough so that the agenda of the Current Occupant remains relatively unimpeded.

The dog whistles are certainly being heard and responded to in lots of what some may have considered to be “safe” precincts.

[Logical me]

Good news.

[TomGuy]

the Post would talking about how close it was.

In Arkansas, the 2 Senate candidates were almost tied, one would get a slight lead, then the other -- according to the polls and press.

When the votes were counted, Cotton (R) claimed nearly 57% and Pryor (D) got only 39%.

No poll showed them that close. A UofA poll the week before the election did show Cotton up by 14%, and most who saw that poll, discounted it as wishful thinking. Ironically, it was closer to the final tally, even though it, too, was well under the final total.

Many of the polling organizations need to retool their approaches and methodology, because they have been mostly wrong since the 2010 election cycle.

[abb]

The two LA CD’s are already red, so they won’t be pickups. But more important, after Landrieu’s ouster, there won’t be one single Democrat in a Louisiana statewide office. Her brother Mitch is the Mayor of New Orleans, there’s but one Dem congressman, and there’s a couple of Public Service Commissioners that are still Dem. Both houses of the Legislature are GOP.

[Charles Martel]

Landrieu initially found success due to her family name, which is no longer enough to protect her. Fun fact: Mary is the ONLY Louisiana politician that EMILY’s List has successfully backed. Pro-abortion politics is a tough sell in the Bayou State.

[DJ MacWoW]

Donate!

[Baynative]

[KC_Conspirator]

Wave? What wave? Mandate? What mandate?