General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsOnly one New England Republican remains in Congress - and she could lose or retire in 2020
By James Hohmann
November 16 at 9:17 AM
THE BIG IDEA: There will not be a single Republican from New England in the U.S. House next year, after Maines secretary of state announced Thursday afternoon that Rep. Bruce Poliquin (R) was narrowly defeated by Democratic challenger Jared Golden after an instant runoff using ranked-choice voting. That leaves Sen. Susan Collins of Maine as the sole Republican survivor among the 33 members of Congress from New England and theres a real chance shell either retire or be defeated in 2020.
-- This can be viewed as part of the ongoing national realignment Ive highlighted over the past few weeks. There are notable exceptions like Joe Manchin or Conor Lamb, but as federal elections become more nationalized than ever, its harder for moderate Democrats to get reelected in red states like Indiana, Missouri and North Dakota. And the reverse is true for Republicans in blue states.
-- This trend isnt new, of course, but its been supercharged in the Trump era. President Trump won a single electoral vote from Maine in 2016 because he narrowly carried the very rural 2nd District, which Poliquin won in 2014 after it was held by Democrats for two decades. (The previous Republican to represent the district was Olympia Snowe, who gave it up to run for Senate in 1994.) That made Trump the first Republican presidential candidate since George W. Bush won New Hampshire in 2000 to get any electoral votes at all from New England.
-- Republicans have found success in New England governors races of late because theyre able to avoid the maw of Trump and the thicket of national issues. Charlie Baker in Massachusetts, Chris Sununu in New Hampshire and Phil Scott in Vermont each won second terms this month. But Democrats handily picked up the Maine governorship after eight years of GOP Gov. Paul LePage.
more
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/daily-202/2018/11/16/daily-202-only-one-new-england-republican-remains-in-congress-and-she-could-lose-or-retire-in-2020/5bee2cd21b326b3929054888/?utm_term=.4a5bd793d444&wpisrc=nl_daily202&wpmm=1
GreenPartyVoter
(72,382 posts)dem4decades
(11,307 posts)dubyadiprecession
(5,725 posts)For the sake of further humiliating Trump.
Adrahil
(13,340 posts)Deep down in side, she is a Republican loyalist.
Zing Zing Zingbah
(6,496 posts)I don't see why she just doesn't do that. She should just say "fuck it", turn independent, and vote against the Trump and the Republicans for the remainder of her term. She could redeem herself somewhat then. Hell, she's probably not getting re-elected, so why bother with ass kissing the Republican leadership any more? She's always seemed like she's reluctantly going along with them when that isn't what she really wants. She made a bad choice following them and it seems half-hearted, like she's not into it.
BeyondGeography
(39,386 posts)But Collins never lets us have any fun.
BumRushDaShow
(129,662 posts)No it's not. See NY, NJ, IL & CA. All 4 had GOP Governors who would be considered "moderate" (ie., they were not a "Kobach" or a "Brownback" ) and all were tossed out and replaced with a Democrat. Same happened here in PA when Corbett was booted (and PA is a purple state NOT a red state).
beachbum bob
(10,437 posts)Yavin4
(35,450 posts)The Republican party started out as a Northern/New England/Midwest based, abolitionist party.