I'll update this post as the results sink in further.
Dems stole the crown jewel of the Republican Party: Texas.
- Message. Democrats were wildly and wickedly on message, which, historically, is a rare event. Marquee candidates focused on the cost of living– the inane cost of gas, groceries, healthcare. Many got out of their partisan bubble and actually spoke to a wide swath of people in normal, everyday language. Cross-over bipartisan appeal. Talarico won 66% of Independents in Texas and 11% of Republicans. Unheard of. Nationally, the majority of Gen X finally decided, albeit barely, that Republicans weren’t cutting it and voted for a Democrat.
- Brand. For a party that had/has a brand problem, there’s no better way to begin a rebrand than winning an election in, essentially, a national landslide. People voted more so against the GOP’s record, less so for the Democrats. Still, it’s a once-in-a-blue-moon start.
- If you didn’t know that Black voters are the backbone of –the most potent voting constituency in–the Democratic Party, you do now.
- Culture war. The past two years, the GOP has anchored its core message on transgender people. it didn't work. That doesn’t mean it won’t likely remain, over time, a fixture in the party as it has for 50 years. The culture war will take on a new iteration.
Democracy
- Democracy worked last night. It may be slow and frustrating, and easier to undermine that everyone thought, but it remains a political accountability mechanism like no other on the planet.
- Again and again, we see money’s not everything. Money is required and extremely helpful, but Big Money ran up against Big Losses last night. Elon Musk is the most prominent example of spending several hundred million with zero return on investment.
- Gerrymandering didn’t work, either.
- For years, people of all stripes and background have wondered, with angst, why we can’t come together for once and stop being so divided. Well, we just did.
On the issues
Voters' priority issues included: Government corruption was crucial or a major factor for 90% of voters; cost of living at 89%; war in Iran at 74% ; and immigration enforcement at 73%.
56% of voters called artificial intelligence and data centers a “crucial” or “major factor” in their vote for Congress (exit-polls, NBC News). 44% said they were a minor factor or no factor in their vote.
https://x.com/BusinessInsider/status/2117985718207222231
Questions moving forward
- Will dems deliver on their campaign promises, when it comes to cost of living, health care, AI data centers, and war in Iran?
- Will the party keep it going and stay laser-focused not just on more popular policies but on voters liking them. Likeability is crucial in who wins and who loses an election.
- Will the Republican Party do some soul searching and return to a conservative popular party again?
- How will the calculus of the 2028 presidential election change, with Texas now in play?
- How does AI industry retool it data center push, if at all?