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Underground > Switchboard >

US Elections - 2006

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02:34 / 08.11.06

I just checked TPM to get a sense of what's going on before I hit the hay.

Clay Shaw (my long-time representative; I have form letter replies from him) is no more.

But one of the few other races I really care about is a nail-biter:

VA-SEN Webb (D): 49.23% Allen (R): 49.57% n/a n/a 97.22% 11:23 pm EST

97.22% of precincts reporting in, and Webb and Allen are separated by .3%. Gah!

Interesting that Lieberman won. I kind of expected that.

02:36 / 08.11.06

Closing in on .2% :
VA-SEN Webb (D): 49.29% Allen (R): 49.5% n/a n/a 97.42% 11:29 pm EST

02:47 / 08.11.06

CNN tells me I have a Republican governor again. Oh, well.

And they have Allen up by a full percentage point. Hmph.

02:53 / 08.11.06

CNN now has Webb up by a point with 99% of precincts reporting.

I wonder if there will be recounts....

02:59 / 08.11.06

From CNN:

Good News: South Dakota's 'ban abortion' measure was defeated, and the minimum wage was raised in a pile of states...

Bad News: A whole lot of Gay Marriage banning everywhere...

Tryphena Absent

06:35 / 08.11.06

(Huzzah America)

MattShepherd: I WEDDED KALI!

08:25 / 08.11.06

Nice and all, but aren't the mid-terms sort of the Winter Olympics of U.S. elections? Nice if you do well, but nobody really remembers in four years anyway?

My concern is that this will put the Democrats "in power" but unable to really get much done in two years, and in two years it will be all YARRR LOOKIT THE DEMOCRATS WERE IN POWER BUT WE'RE STILL STUCK IN IRAQ AND THE GAYS ARE RAMPANT YARRR 9/11!!!! to put the Republicans back in the White House?

ONLY NICE THINGS

08:32 / 08.11.06

Lots of bans on gay marriage, but at least South Dakota rejected the insane abortion ban. Dtill, fuckarghs, really. I'd like to read more on the thinking.

Immediate thought, with the Senate still hanging - looks like Virginia will go to a recount - is that the Democratic wins - Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island - in the House and the Senate are running mainly along an eastward trend (yes, Mark Foley in Florida, but it's on the East coast and I'm not sure you can get much psephologically out of people turning away from the page-grooming party). So, you end up with states which had previously been fiscally conservative, like Rhode Island, being scared into jumping to moderate Democrat status by the a) religio-authoritarian lunacy and b) terrible financial husbandry of the Republicans, and an increasingly rumpy red South...

Tryphena Absent

08:54 / 08.11.06

Well Matt, is it forgettable or scary because those two things seem quite far apart...

10:10 / 08.11.06

Well, I think the midterms have probably mattered less in the past. This one, however, is significant because the democrats look set to get some real power back (possibly - if they gain the Senate - lots and lots of power indeed) and with that power they can make things extremely difficult for Bush and co(cks) over the next couple of years - difficulties which could well translate into even more democrat votes come general election time.

They will almost certainly force the US out of Irag, however, which I'm not convinced is a brilliant thing.

11:14 / 08.11.06

BWAHAHAHAHAH.........

11:15 / 08.11.06

I forgot to mention from the Blogosphere the Dems are leading both in Montana and Virginia. COME ON, SENATE CONTROL!!!!!

11:26 / 08.11.06

I forget to mention that I've been getting powerful, neck tingley rushes of joy throughout the day.

11:39 / 08.11.06

OK, so I have a question - looking at the BBC website graphic there look to be 100 seats in the senate - the republicans have 49 of them, IF (and at this stage it is still a big IF) the democrats take Montana and Virginia they will also have 49 seats, with the remaining two going to independents.

This being the case, if the Democrats take both the seats still in contention isn't the result still a tie with no overall control?

That is question one

Question two is in two parts - Joe Lieberman is one of these indies, is a democrat who stood as an indie because he failed to win the primary for his party. Does anyone know who the other indie is and how the Democrats could take the senate?

Our Lady Has Left the Building

11:39 / 08.11.06

I did go to bed last night thinking that the Republicans had distorted democracy enough to win, so I'm feeling a little good about the Diet Republicans winning something for the first time in ten years, even if it's at the expense of running on no policies but 'Bush smells of wee' and 'we're working in the best interests of Americans, we're not going to waste time on any partisan attacks'. I doubt this will really matter too much for now, Bush doesn't have to listen to the people ever again now.

11:50 / 08.11.06

Bernie Sanders is the other independent Senator. There's a quick bio over at CNN (scroll almost all the way down and look for the Vermont entry).

12:48 / 08.11.06

I'm very excited that my State(NH) pulled a major cool rep switch-a-roo.
We've ousted Jeb Bradley (R) with Carol Shea-Porter(D) for Congress.

I've spent the last year or so sending Bradley uppitty emails about his voting record so I'm very excited we got Shea-Porter in. I'm hoping she kicks some butt.

The South Dakota rejection of the ban is really inspiring but I'm afraid it was only booted because the orignal ban didn't have provisions for rape and incest. I suspect the anti-choice folk are going to try another ban with those provisions.

The gay marriage thing is depressing but hey at least Arizona held it up. I'm not sure why my country seems to be stuck in the 50's, but then I can't for the life of me understand being afraid of people getting married of their own free will.
IT'S ONLY LOVE, PEOPLE!!!

Nine states approved eminent-domain measures barring the government from taking private property for a private use.

yay fuck that with a bulldozer right in the ear. I filled in my bubble to ban that with much glee.

13:16 / 08.11.06

I shook hands with Bernie Sanders once. He's basically a socialist, but with a strong sense of localism -- the impression I get, anyway, is that he's very much a "Vermont first and foremost" congressman.

In general, though, he's left. Lieberman isn't, really.

And Virginia is breaking my heart. Or my brain. TPM has made the observation that there's probably been skullduggery at the polls on the Republican side, and that the FBI is already investigating some claims, so the Allen camp might not really want the attention that a recount would bring. This seems a little wishful to me, but y'know, it's a thought.

13:25 / 08.11.06

I doubt this will really matter too much for now, Bush doesn't have to listen to the people ever again now.

Yes, but it's not the people he'll have to listen to, it's the democrat controlled HoR. As I understand it said control means they'll be able to propose legislation, will possess the clout to get it pushed through, and will hold the purse strings. Also, he's gonna start getting it in the ear from the rest of the republican party pretty soon, and they, as a whole, and like the democrats, are going to be listening pretty intently to the US population as they're gonna want to stay in power post Georgey Boy.

As for Senate control, I don't know much about the details, but the BBC commentator on the Today Programme seemed to think that it would come down to Virginia and that that was going to be a very close race indeed.

13:54 / 08.11.06

The South Dakota rejection of the ban is really inspiring but I'm afraid it was only booted because the orignal ban didn't have provisions for rape and incest. I suspect the anti-choice folk are going to try another ban with those provisions.

I seem to recall reading that the woman running the campaign is a total fanatic, and she absolutely will not compromise on that point, and she will keep trying again every year until it passes.

Nine states approved eminent-domain measures barring the government from taking private property for a private use.

yay fuck that with a bulldozer right in the ear. I filled in my bubble to ban that with much glee.

I hope your state's version was better than Prop 90. I hated having to vote against an anti-eminent domain prop, but I did.

14:11 / 08.11.06

Ours was pretty straight forward on the ban. No taking land to give it to private developers. How was yours worded?

I was a good kid and did my research but was very happy to see Voter Information cards on the proposed questions. Had both formal amendment statements and the translated what-it-means blurbs.

*

14:58 / 08.11.06

As I understand it, Prop 90 allowed corporations who have suffered less than projected profits and can make an argument that it was due to the latest spotted-owl land use regulations to sue the government for their projected lost profits. Cheer a little for its defeat for me, because in my area apparently mostly slavering fools voted on the propositions.

15:09 / 08.11.06

id, dig this: recount in Sarasota.

Apparently there are problems with the way the electronic machines counted votes for the U.S. House seat... the one being vacated by Katherine Harris.

15:38 / 08.11.06

So how long before control of the Senate is decided?

16:11 / 08.11.06

Montana is still being counted and a result could be announced at any moment, pretty much. I think one's been expected since about midday Eastern Time today. If there's a recount in Virginia though (which seems more likely than not at the moment, is that right?), that won't even begin until the 28th of November, so it'll probably be weeks away yet.

16:15 / 08.11.06

Donald Rumsfield will be stepping down, according to the ticker at the top of the BBC and Guardian websites. His replacement will be Robert Gates.

Well that's a good place to start

.

16:43 / 08.11.06

I must be dreaming. Somebody pinch me.

ONLY NICE THINGS

16:52 / 08.11.06

Yes. Shame he made it to 74 before being allowed to step down rather than, say, being tarred and feathered on the steps of the White House... still, it's all good.

ONLY NICE THINGS

16:57 / 08.11.06

Montana goes Democrat, meanwhile.

Just Virginia to go... which looks like a recount. If it goes to Allen, then the Republicans have a de facto majority in the Senate still...

17:09 / 08.11.06

I feel like I'm watching an ol' fashion horse race yet my burnt American voter suspcions are waiting to yell 'Shenanigans!'

17:24 / 08.11.06

Chances of a VA recount seem to be slimming. We'll really know by the end of the month.

18:43 / 08.11.06

No one answered these, so...
there look to be 100 seats in the senate - the republicans have 49 of them, IF (and at this stage it is still a big IF) the democrats take Montana and Virginia they will also have 49 seats, with the remaining two going to independents.

This being the case, if the Democrats take both the seats still in contention isn't the result still a tie with no overall control?

No, Dick Cheney is the tiebreaker vote, so the Republicans still would have control, ultimately.

Joe Lieberman is one of these indies, is a democrat who stood as an indie because he failed to win the primary for his party. Does anyone know who the other indie is and how the Democrats could take the senate?

Bernie Sanders is the other independent, but both he and Lieberman will caucus with the democrats, so in reality they count as democrats, though classified as independents.

Jake, Colossus of Clout

19:23 / 08.11.06

This being the case, if the Democrats take both the seats still in contention isn't the result still a tie with no overall control?

No, Dick Cheney is the tiebreaker vote, so the Republicans still would have control, ultimately.

With Lieberman and Sanders caucusing with the Democrats, they would have control, 51-49. Cheney only counts if Webb somehow loses in Virginia, which doesn't look likely at this point.

Our Lady Has Left the Building

19:52 / 08.11.06

[via BoingBoing, who have killed Alan Selvidge's server]

22:01 / 08.11.06

I must be dreaming. Somebody pinch me.

Amen, sir.

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