Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Specter ousted; Murtha's seat remains Democratic

In the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, CNN projects that Rep. Joe Sestak has ousted five-term incumbent, Republican-turned-Democratic Sen. Arlen Specter.

Also in Pennsylvania, CNN projects that Mark Critz will beat Tim Burns in a special election to fill the late Rep. John Murtha's seat. Though held by the Murtha for years, the district the Democrat represented was considered more conservative than anything else. The victory by Critz signals a strong rejection of hard-right views and a push for more mainstream progressive policies, at least in the district held by the late Congressman. Critz himself is no liberal -- he's pro-life and pro-Second Amendment -- but he is left of center in several other areas, including job creation and energy independence.

Though other races are still going on, these victories by liberal candidates in the Senate primary and in Rep. Murtha's former seat are indicative, in my mind, of what we can expect come November. More Americans are going to support Democrats this year, returning most of them to Congress. We may lose some seats, but I'm optimistic it's not going to be the bloodbath Republicans are hoping it will be.

1 comment:

  1. Yeah, I'm beginning to believe it won't be the bloodbath folks were making it out to be, as long as the economy continues to move in a positive direction.

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