Early in the 2006 cycle,
Democrats spotted the opening they'd been given.
John Hostettler, a frequent speaker at Religious Right gatherings and sponsor of a bill designed to make it harder for people to bring church-state cases into federal courts, was trounced by
Democrat Brad Ellsworth, 61 percent to 39 percent.
In central Ohio,
Democrat Mary Jo Kilroy is giving Republican incumbent Deborah Pryce a run for her money in the traditionally Republican Fifteenth District.
It would be hard enough to see the GOP nominate someone who is "wrong" on one or two out of three, let alone three (just to be fair and symmetrical, it is just as unlikely that
Democrats would nominate someone who is pro-life on abortion, and pretty much opposed to any gun control or gay rights measures).
The
Democrats had long been dominant in American politics.
With
Democrats in control of the governor's mansion, the House and the Senate, "whatever measures Blagojevich wants to get done, he will be able to get done.
Polls show the electorate split evenly in party identification with the Republicans and the
Democrats roughly 45 percent each.
HOUSE REPUBLICAN CHARGES DEMOCRATS WITH ELECTION-YEAR DEMAGOGUERY
People are not voting for the
Democrats on this issue," Pew Research Center director Andy Kohut said.
The Casey run was plotted not long after the 2004 election, when polls convinced Washingtonians that "moral values issues"--abortion, gay marriage--were keeping the
Democrats at the kiddie table even as the governing GOP stumbled from blunder to blunder.
State Senator Connie Williams, a
Democrat, chose not to run for a seat in Pennsylvania's Sixth district.
Gutierrez, a Chicago
Democrat of Puerto Rican heritage.
