Entries from November 2006 ↓

From today’s New York Daily News.

Va. Senate Race Goes To Webb

POSTED: 3:41 am EST November 7, 2006
UPDATED: 9:02 pm EST November 8, 2006

WASHINGTON — The Democrats clinched the final victory needed for a 51-seat majority in the U.S. Senate Wednesday night, according to the Associated Press, effectively handing both houses of Congress to the party for the first time since 1994.

Jim Webb was declared the winner by the AP reporters who contacted election officials in all 134 localities where voting occurred. About half had completed canvassing and nearly all absentee ballots had been counted, according to the AP.

As of Wednesday, the Senate stood at 49 Republicans and 50 Democrats (including two independents who caucus with the party), with Virginia still up in the air. Because Vice President Dick Cheney holds the tie-breaker in the chamber, the Democrats needed a full 51 seats in their caucus to win majority control.

The new AP count Wednesday showed Webb with 1,172,538 votes and incumbent Sen. George Allen with 1,165,302, a difference of 7,236. The only two statewide recounts in modern history in Virginia have resulted in vote changes of only a few hundred votes.

Citing an adviser to Allen who spoke on condition of anonymity, the AP reported that Allen has not formally decided to campaign, but intended to wait until most of the canvassing was reported, which could come as early as Thursday night. The adviser said Allen was reluctant to request a recount if vote tallies held the same margins they did on election night.Democrats Win Both Houses Of Congress

He could have waited for a new Democratic majority in the House to be sworn in and then hold hearings on his mis-management of the war in Iraq, but instead Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is stepping down. In a breaking news story, this information has been confirmed by President Bush.

Reports suggest Rumsfeld was prepared to work with Congress concerning Iraq as late as Wednesday morning. No word on what caused the change of heart. Perhaps it was a simple matter of stepping down now, or being forced out later.

Tuesday’s elections are reaping benefits already.

Democrats win the House. The Senate is too close to call. Update: The Senate is now split 50-50 with a Democratic victory in Montana. (see below)

That headline was screamed across newspapers from coast to coast this morning, as the American people sent a clear and unambiguous message to President Bush, about his handling of the war in Iraq, the atmosphere of corruption rampant in his administration, and the general direction of the country under a president with the lowest favorable rate in the history of the office.

Here in New York, a solidly blue state in a solidly blue region of the country, the election was a bit anti-climactic. We have a new Democratic Governor, Eliot Spitzer, the outgoing State Attorney General. The new Attorney General, Andrew Cuomo, is the son of the last Democratic Governor, Mario Cuomo.

I am proud to say that the congressman from my district here in NYC, Charles Rangel, now stands to gain the chairmanship of the House Ways and Means Committee, the committee that determines how the federal government spends its money. A Black man and now a Democrat in such an important seat at this point in history is a significant achievement.

Back in my hometown area in upstate New York, a congressional district that has always sent moderate Republicans to Washington, a Democrat has unseated an incumbent Republican. LINK

Ah, there�s change in the air and it smells good.

Election Map LINK

A Loud Message for Bush LINK

Voters Rebuke Bush, War in Iraq, the Right LINK

NY

Democratic Representatives Poised to Snag Top House Jobs LINK

Democrats take statewide races LINK

PA

Casey Ousts Santorum LINK

MA

Deval Patrick Wins Governor�s Race in a Walk LINK

VA

Webb Has Slim Lead over Allen, Recount Likely LINK

NJ

Menedez Rides Democrats� Wave LINK

OH

Strickland’s landslide ends GOP statewide dominance LINK

MO

McCaskill ousts Talent in tight Senate Race LINK

TN

Corker captures Frist Senate seat LINK

MT

Democrat Wins Montana Seat LINK

National

Gay marriage loses at polls LINK

Governors’ mansions go blue LINK

Record Number of Gays Elected to Office LINK

International

Ortega wins Nicaraguan election BBC LINK

Comment: paradigm shift result that changes Capitol Hill Times of London LINK

It’s a big leap from the statehouse to the White House Toronto Globe and Mail LINK

Meanwhile, Tuesday’s New York Times will make history.