Election 2005 Tough on GOP

In America, every November has some election or other going on. In 2005, a year without any congressional races, only a handful of contests were fought, but they did carry some importance. The Democrats won the governors’ mansions in New Jersey and Virginia, the GOP retained Gracie Mansion where the Mayor of New York lives, and four referenda in California backed by movie-star Governor Schwarzeneggar went down to defeat. It was a bad night for the Republicans, but this is a snapshot only. A year from now, everything could be different; after all, a year ago, everything was different.

Starting with the good news for the Republicans, billionaire Mayor Mike Bloomberg defeated Bronx machine hack Fernando Ferrer by 20% points. Mr. Ferrer has been trying to become mayor for years, and when he finally got his shot, the unions and the vaunted New York Democratic machine stayed home. The fact is that, after Rudolph Giuliani’s horrendously divisive regime and the dreadful economic conditions after the Al Qaeda murders, many lower mammals could have served as mayor and seen things improve. Since the recovery happened on his watch, Mr. Bloomberg got credit. But before the GOP gets all excited, remember that the mayor was registered as a Democrat until just before the last mayor’s race (he switched to avoid a primary fight for the nomination and the GOP was grateful for any plausible candidate), he’s pro-choice, and funded his own campaign with $70 million of his own money.

Down the coast in New Jersey, one of the nastiest, most personal and downright vicious campaigns came to an end when US Senator John Corzine defeated businessman Doug Forrester by about 10%. In his acceptance speech, Mr. Corzine (who now gets to appoint his successor in Washington) said, “I want to thank the people of New Jersey for rejecting the Bush-Rove tactics that we see in politics.” The Corzine camp made sure Mr. Bush appeared in their ads right next to Mr. Forrester. More of that will turn up in next year’s races nationwide unless Iraq is miraculously saved.

If it isn’t, one can expect more races like that in Virginia, a fairly Bushevik state, where Democratic Lieutenant Governor Tim Kaine defeated Republican Jerry Kilgore, a former state attorney general, for the job of governor. Mr. Kilgore knew he was in trouble thanks to Mr. Bush (otherwise the campaign seemed to hinge of whether Adolf Hitler deserved the death penalty – it was a stupid argument); he went so far as to make sure he had a scheduling conflict to avoid an appearance with the president near the end.

And in California, Governor Schwarenegger put himself on the line asking voters to “Join Arnold” in passing Propositions 74, 75, 76 and 77. The voters told him “No, No, No and No.” He wanted to extend the probationary period for teachers, limit political fundraising of public employee unions, increase the governor’s control over the state budget, and revise the way voting districts are drawn. In so doing, he proved himself a political naïf. The resulting coalition of opposition overwhelmed him. The man over-reached, and now, he must find a new way to get the state behind him. That will take time and effort that he could have put to better use had he focused on just one thing.

It was a bad day for Republicans to be sure. But last year's election cannot be described as a debacle for them. Much has changed in the 12 months since the re-(s)election of George W. Bush, and in 12 more months, those changes can be undone. For now, though, the voters have spoken, and the GOP needs to wake up -- Mr. Bush is unpopular, and since the voters can't vote against him, they vote against his allies.


© Copyright 2005 by The Kensington Review, J. Myhre, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent.
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