Next Steps for Republican Party Unclear Republicans Roberts, Purdue, McConnell, Abbott, LePage, and McSally were all victorious in their campaigns. Other Republican victories saw Tea Party–backed Joni Ernst defeating Democrat Bruce Braley to replace retiring senator Tom Harkin (D, Iowa). In North Carolina and Colorado, Republican challengers Thom Tillis and Cory Gardner defeated Democratic incumbents Kay Hagan and Mark Udall, respectively. In closely-watched gubernatorial races, Florida incumbent governor Rick Scott (R) defeated former governor Charlie Crist, who left the Republican Party in 2010 to become an Independent and then, in 2012, declared himself a Democrat. In Wisconsin, Governor Scott Walker (R), who in 2012 survived a recall election after pushing through a law that limited state employees collective bargaining rights, defeated Democratic challenger Mary Burke (D). Additionally, in heavily Democratic Massachusetts, Republican Charlie Baker narrowly defeated Democrat Martha Coakley to replace Deval Patrick (D), who was not seeking another term. The election results prompted immediate speculation as to how Republicans would govern. Some observers predicted that, after six years in opposition, Republicans would have to take affirmative steps to negotiate and cooperate with President Obama. In his victory speech on election night, Mitch McConnell, who will become Senate Majority leader in January 2015, struck a conciliatory tone. “I don’t expect the president to wake up tomorrow and view the world any differently than he did when he woke up this morning, McConnell said. And he knows I won’t either. But…we do have an obligation to work together on the issues we can agree on.... Just because we have a two-party system doesn’t mean we have to be in perpetual conflict.” Yet many Republicans insist that their victory was a mandate to continue their opposition to the presidents policies, including their efforts to repeal the ACA and block other government regulations. Now, Politico journalist Dan Nather wrote after the elections, the Republicans will have to live up to the expectations—and see if they can get on the same page. It remains to be seen what strategy the Republican Party will adopt in the final two years of the Obama presidency, and how this dynamic will affect the 2016 presidential race. Discussion Questions 1) What are the main ways that the Republicans broad success in the 2014 midterm elections are likely to affect the final two years of President Obamas term? How would it affect U.S. politics beyond those two years? 2) Why do you think midterm elections generally favor the party opposing the sitting president? 3) How could the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) be affected by the results of the midterm elections? 4) Many campaigns have accused incumbent legislators of aggravating gridlock in Congress. Do you think the addition of new lawmakers will make Congress more productive? Why or why not? 5) Pick a House, Senate, or gubernatorial race in your state and write a newspaper column explaining whom you supported and why. Bibliography Balz, Dan. Texas Has Become Epicenter of Conservative Movement. Washington Post, September 20, 2014, washingtonpost. Cillizza, Chris. The Election Is Six Weeks From Today. Here Are Six Things We Know About It. Washington Post, September 23, 2014, washingtonpost. ———. This Is the Most Important Election in Kansas in 40 Years. Washington Post, September 23, 2014, washingtonpost. Cohn, Nate. Why Georgia May Be Bluer Than It Appears. New York Times, October 8, 2014, nytimes. DeSilver, Drew. Congress Still on Track to Be Among Least Productive in Recent History. Pew Research Center, September 23, 2014, pewresearch.org. Eligon, John. Conservative Experiment Faces Revolt in Reliably Red Kansas. New York Times, September 14, 2014, nytimes. Gabby Giffords SuperPAC Fights for Her Old House Seat. National Public Radio, October 5, 2014, npr.org. Goodnough, Abby. In Kentucky, Health Law Helps Voters but Saps Votes. New York Times, September 16, 2014, nytimes. Hook, Janet. As Midterm Elections Loom, U.S. Voters Are Excited About…Nobody. Wall Street Journal, October 7, 2014, online.wsj. Hunter, Kathleen. McConnell in Jeopardy Runs as Ultimate Washington Insider. Bloomberg, October 9, 2014, bloomberg. Joseph, Cameron. Gloves Come off in Georgia Senate Debate. The Hill, October 7, 2014, thehill. Lewis, Paul. Arizonas High Desert: Where Border Politics Become a Harsh, Almost Sinister Experience. Guardian, October 7, 2014, theguardian. Martin, Jonathan. In This Election, Obamas Party Benches Him. New York Times, October 7, 2014, nytimes. Mistler, Steve. Poll Shows Tightening Race for Maine Governor. Portland Press Herald, September 28, 2014, pressherald. Paletta, Damian. Maines Governors Race Serves as Referendum on Welfare. Wall Street Journal, October 6, 2014, online.wsj. Parker, Ashley. After Career of Firsts in Air Force, G.O.P. Challenger Has a New Mission. New York Times, February 25, 2014, nytimes. Additional Sources Additional information about the 2014 midterm elections can be found in the following sources: Lofgren, Mike. The Party Is Over: How Republicans Went Crazy, Democrats Became Useless, and the Middle Class Got Shafted. New York: Penguin Group, 2012. Skocpol, Theda, and Vanessa Williamson. The Tea Party and the Remaking of Republican Conservatism. New York: Oxford University Press, 2013. Contact Information Information on how to contact organizations that either are mentioned in the discussion of the 2014 midterm elections or can provide additional information on the subject is listed below: Democratic National Committee 430 South Capitol St. S.E. Washington, D.C. 20036 Telephone: (202) 863-8000 Internet: democrats.org Pew Research Center 1615 L St. N.W. Suite 700 Washington, D.C. 20036 Telephone: (202) 419-4300 Internet: pewresearch.org Republican National Committee 310 First St. S.E. Washington, D.C. 20003 Telephone: (202) 863-8500 Internet: gop
Posted on: Mon, 10 Nov 2014 23:53:55 +0000
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