The Day After
I purposefully did not make any projections or predictions myself before the election this year, because in three of the races we had 6 or more candidate fields, and in the other races I cared about we had entrenched corrupt incumbents who have won against all odds before. So at least I don’t look like somewhat of a fool today for making a wrong prediction. LOL.
Still, I am disappointed that Townsend did not win the Congressional race. I am disappointed that Young did not win the Mayoral race in Wilmington. At least, with both races, there are some consolation prizes available. Bryan Townsend is still a State Senator, a leader of progressive policies in Dover, and has a bright future. Hopefully Tom Carper retires in 2018. And I have no problems with voting enthusiastically for Lisa Blunt Rochester. She has my full support. In Wilmington, at least Dennis P. Williams, that arrogant yet ignorant Mayor-King, is gone. And Eugene Young will be back. Indeed, perhaps, in his admitted need for outreach to the communities, the potential Mayor-elect Mike Purzycki can bring Young into his administration.
So enough of the disappointments. Time to celebrate. Tom Gordon is gone, praise Jesus. And we are replacing him with a honorable man devoted to public service. I cannot wait to see how Matt Meyer does in office. Karen Weldin Stewart is gone! Hopefully we get a true consumer advocate in the office in the form of Trinidad Navarro.
And we get a chance to wipe the slate clean at both the county and city level. And we get to do it on Democratic terms. For decades, it has been the same old faces. And I worried that those same old faces would eventually hang around long enough and screw up enough to hand the county and state to the Republicans. We don’t have to worry about that for now. The One Party State has been saved because the Democratic Party, internally, took care of its business. Pay attention, John Daniello. That is why primaries are important. Sometimes they are needed to clean out the stink.
I, too, can vote enthusiastically for LBR. My one fear? The Carper Connection. But if she votes the way she has said she’ll vote, she will be a huge upgrade over Carney. Huge. And I have every confidence that she will be infinitely better than that weaselly liar, Sean Barney, who I think would have been a Carper clone. Wonder what spot Carney has picked out for him. Or maybe he’s headed to Rodel. BTW, didja know he was wounded in Iraq?
Another reason for encouragement: While it is clear that female voters were the driving force behind yesterday’s votes, they were informed enough to help sweep KWS out of office.
Despite Bryan Townsend’s loss, grassroots politics prevailed in Matt Meyer’s win over Tom Gordon. I’m concerned about what disasters he’ll unearth in County government once the Gordon gang leaves office, but it’s clear that a countywide cop enema was necessary. And Bryan Townsend will be back, hopefully with most of that student loan debt paid off. In the mean time, he will be the progressive leader in the Senate.
Say goodbye to the Dennis Williamses. Sean Matthews has now firmly established himself as one of the progressives’ greatest hopes in Dover.
I know that a lot of people, including some of our contributors, are hurting over Eugene Young’s narrow loss. People like Eugene Young come along very rarely. He will be back and I believe he will be a shining star in Delaware politics for years to come. I’m pretty sure that all of us at DL will be volunteering for him someday soon.
I am worried about what will happen in SD 10 once Bethany Hall-Long is elected Lt. Governor in November. Late fall/early winter special elections are not exactly D strong suits. Looks like Quin Johnson and Earl Jaques are in that district, so maybe it’ll be one of them. Which, of course, would necessitate a House Special Election should one of them win…
So, yes, a mixed bag. But potentially an election that ends with the arrow pointed up.
Even though I supported Townsend, the time is probably right for Delaware to send a woman and a person of color to Washington instead of another white guy. I am pleased we will still have Townsend’s voice and his vote in Dover, especially on education issues, and of course I would like to see Bryan run for higher office in the future.
Credit where credit is due KWS won Sussex And Kent got waxed in the city. The Meyer/Del Lib/ progressive triumvirate prevailed. Crane was entirely ineffective but will get his Gig in January. Life goes on……….
I also want to thank the folks from Delaware United. They played a key role in Matt Meyer’s win, and provided the kind of grassroots enthusiasm that continues to give me hope. If/when some of them step up to run, and I hope they do, I’ll be knocking doors for THEM.
I hope that Crane does get a job in the IC office. He did a good job with Matt Denn, and he knows the subject.
I still want to know why Crane did not go public with information about KWS and instead took it to a single source, TNJ. This stinks to me of a political operative trying to get the newspaper to do its dirty work, a la the O’Donnell stuff that Castle’s people took to Ginger Gibson.
What a day yesterday was. I’ll probably have something about the Eugene Young campaign later.
I’m disappointed with Bryan’s loss, but I don’t mind noting that Bryan is a singular legislator here in Delaware and he really could change the world right here. With John Carney in the Gov’s Office, we’ll need him right here, I’m thinking. I think that LBR will become John Carney in the House at some point. But I hope I am wrong.
Matt Meyer kicked butt all over and he and his team ran a genuinely great campaign. The Gordon Ride-or-Dies will always be with us still trying to insist on Gordon’s unknown sainthood. I’m looking forward to seeing how this new era in NCCo government unfolds.
Also glad to see that Trini Navarro sent KWS packing — finally. Expectations are really high for you Trini.
Purzycki won by 234 votes after flipping 1200 Republicans in a Democratic primary. The only Mayor I acknowledge is Young.
I hear ya. If Purz governs as a Republican the city will quickly turn on him and Young will be elected in 2020.
Unless Young is in the US Senate by then…
Purzycki won by 234 votes after flipping 1200 Republicans in a Democratic primary.
I hear you. And getting 1 out of every 4 votes cast for Mayor. Williams gone is an exceptional thing, though.
Good night overall. Some tough losses and a few good ones fell through the cracks but overall I’m actually pleasantly surprised and optimistic about the new faces across the state. Let’s just see if they can perform…
Taking something to the TNJ isn’t “going public”?
No, Jason, these days “going public” means taking it to WDEL. (Just ask David Grimaldi.) And, then, when TNJ is sufficiently shamed, they’ll play catch-up.
lol. Good point.
It was definitely a mixed bag. And I’ll take my 48 hours to go through the 12 steps of grief and then I’ll get to knocking on doors. We have some pretty awesome candidates that didn’t have primaries, that I’m excited to get on the ground for. Lanette Edwards in the 22nd for one.
I noted this when I woke up and took another gander at the results (just to be sure Trini really did win)– D turnout was 20% and R turnout was just over 16%… With exception to 2008 State/Presidential Primaries, that’s the highest turnout we’ve had, despite the News Journal, WDEL and reports from polling places that it was slow and low voter turnout.
Also, Sen. Peterson (whom I respect and wish was my Senator, so don’t yell at me) supported Caitlin Olsen and sent letters to folks in district supporting Gordon and both lost… is there anything to read into there?
Karen Petersen sent letters in support of Tom Gordon’s reelection? I’m honestly stunned.
Peterson’s support of Gordon is a definite stain on her record as a progressive. Did Olsen lose to Walsh because of that? I doubt it. I think Walsh might have been more well known.
Maybe Karen was worried about having her tires slashed.
I think the mayor’s office will be relocated to Rockford Park. The Highlands have spoken!
Hahaha.
Not being a city resident, I do not have much say. However, I have to acknowledge the class and genuine dedication of the top three candidates in how they ran their campaigns. They all seem to genuinely care about the city. They all worked incredibly hard. Also, they all were respectful of one another and only tried to get their qualifications across, not tear down the other’s. I’ve known Kevin Kelley for many years and Eugene for several as well. I can tell you that they are good, genuine human beings who do care a great deal about the people they want to serve. I believe Mike will do the same. Regardless of outcome, any of those would have been an enormous improvement over the current Mayor.
I do agree, Dem19703. Mike Purzycki is just under suspicion in these parts because of his closeness to business and Republicans. He may well be a great mayor, uniting all parts of the city. But because of that suspicion, many around here are going to take a wait and see approach. All of us are definitely pleased that Williams is gone.
This stinks to me of a political operative trying to get the newspaper to do its dirty work, a la the O’Donnell stuff that Castle’s people took to Ginger Gibson.
The “political operative” was the DEGOP, and they gave that “stuff” to any reporter or blogger who asked for it.
Purzycki will do like most politicians and listen to his supporters. With all of his support coming from the 8the Ward, We know how those voterd wamt yo fight crime. This means they better make space in Gander Hill because every kid with a tan iso going straight to jail. Locking people up and throwing away the key…. innocent and guilty alike. Broken windows.
Enterprise zones…. really right to work zones.
Hope you’re ready to turn Wilmington into “A Place to Be Somebody…. Who’s making $8/hour”
“they gave that “stuff” to any reporter or blogger who asked for it.”
No, an individual did the approach, no matter who paid for the research. Also, they don’t wait for someone to ask. They choose the target organization, and they prefer those that will protect sources.
Perhaps nobody reading a blog noticed, but “going public” these days means posting it online. Delaware Liberal has a tip line and has broken news. If Mitch Crane weren’t a political operative (I have in the past used the term “hack”) he would have given it to a site that has supported him in the past, namely this one.
@Bane: Jobs at $8 an hour? The city would be thankful for any job at whatever pay. Real economic recovery for the city would require a state investment equal to what has been spent building the Riverfront (somewhere a bit north of $200 million over the years) in the older parts of the city.
It just so happens that an overhaul of the city’s sewer system to keep fecal matter out of the river would cost about that much and employ lots of laborers. Won’t happen in a million years, but just sayin’.
Anonymous- I thought I wrote this a few days ago, maybe not. I did no file the FOIA requests that resulted in the documents alluded to. The material was not sent to me and it was not my decision to take it to one news source. it went to the NJ and there was interest in it. A week ago it was obvious nothing would be printed. The bottom line is Trini won and the material is available, I assume, if someone wants to actually do something with it.
And thank you for calling me an “operative”. I do not find that offensive.
If we think about it, it is somewhat of a positive thing that Bryan lost last night because if he had won than his seat too would need a special election. As we know, special elections usually are where the DEGOP do well. With him still in the Senate we have a progressive voice to hold the executive branch accountable.
I was equally stunned when I found out she wrote a letter (apparently a detailed one, I have not seen said letter) in support of Gordon.
And I would tend to agree that Jack was just more well known.
Today is all but over (ok, it’s not) so 54 days until the next election… who’s ready?
I believe LBR is a nice woman with legitimate high-level government experience and great potential. But her public performances (and lack thereof) left the impression that she is not ready for prime time, to put it charitably. I wanted to figure out how she won so convincingly. So I made sweet Excel love to the district-level data on the Department of Elections’ web page, so you don’t have to. My takeaways are below. Please note: the data is the data, but the conclusions are mine.
For starters, it would be easy to say that LBR won because of strong support in the City and surrounding areas, and that is true. But the real story is that she administered a broad-based, statewide ass kicking. All told, LBR won 28 of the 41 RDs statewide. In 13 of those 28 RDs, LBR earned more votes than Townsend and Barney combined.
As expected, LBR handily carried each of the RDs in the City of Wilmington (RDs 1-4), as well as the surrounding RDs that I’ll call “Greater Wilmington” (RDs 1-4, plus RDs 6, 7, 10, and 13). But she also won in places that surprised me, including:
• RD27 (Glasgow) – This is Earl Jaques’ district, and given its proximity to Newark, I would have thought Townsend would have won. Instead, LBR had more votes than Townsend and Barney combined.
• RD28 (Smyrma) and RD29 (Cheswold/W. Dover) – My guess is that neither of these districts is a hotbed of progressive activity. For years, RD28 has been represented by a racist tree stump, Bill “Lumpy” Carson (his actual nickname), and the 29th is ably represented by Charles W. “Trey” Paradee, III, a guy from an old Dover family that is so rich that they’re comfortable enough giving effete nicknames to their offspring. (Does Trey have a son, and if so, is his nickname Quad?) Anyway, LBR easily won both districts.
• It was the same story even further down in Slower Lower. LBR won RD30 (Harrington), HD33 (Frederica), HD35 (Bridgeville), and HD39 (Seaford). Sure, there aren’t a ton of Ds down there. But the fact that this happened both makes me proud (progress!) and makes me giggle.
Meanwhile, Bryan Townsend’s performance was underwhelming—and my takeaway is that he’s barely a regional candidate at this stage of his career. All told, he won 8 of 41 RDs, but 6 of them were either within the city limits of the People’s Republic of Newark (RDs 23-26) or adjacent areas (RDs 21-22). Even in those districts, Bryan didn’t win big. In only 1 district – Paul Baumbach’s 23rd – did Bryan receive more votes than the next 2 candidates combined.
If you think I’m being too harsh on our ambitious little friend, compare how the candidates did in Greater Wilmington (see RDs listed above) and in Greater Newark. In Greater Wilmington, LBR won huge, taking more than 9,200 out of almost 20,000 votes, compared to around 4,300 for Townsend and 4,200 for Barney. But although Townsend won Newark proper (RDs 23-26), he lost Greater Newark as a whole (RDs 23-26, plus RDs 17-19, 21-22, and 27). Out of around 14,000 votes, LBR received 5,500 or so, with Townsend at around 4,700.
Another possible lesson? Fellating the DSEA doesn’t provide the same value as it used to. Townsend lost big in districts propped up by DSEA water-carriers, including RD19 (K. Williams), RD10 (S. Matthews), RD 6 (D. Heffernan), and RD31 (S. Lynn). Historically, the DSEAs and the SEIUs of the world could be counted on to provide a big lift to a candidate’s ground game. I don’t know if Townsend’s weak performance can be attributed to a lack of real union help, an overreliance on the ground game, or the candidate’s textbook backpfeifengesicht. I report, you decide.
As for Sean Barney, there isn’t much to say. He won 5 out of 41 RDs, all of them in the most conservative districts in the state (RDs 36-38 and 40-41) and by extremely slim margins. Sean seems like a bright guy with a good heart. But if he couldn’t gain any traction with his war hero resume and gobs of out-of-state cash, it is probably time for him to find a new line of work.
Nice analysis. Thanks.
No, an individual did the approach, no matter who paid for the research. Also, they don’t wait for someone to ask. They choose the target organization, and they prefer those that will protect sources.
No, the “individual” was the executive director of the DEGOP and the first “target” to get the information was Jud Bennett in Sussex County. TNJ was more than a week behind. Bennett kept nothing secret including the source. Over 4,000 people across the state got what he wrote about the information, where he got it, and O’Donnell’s response (or lack thereof).
Next, Townsend only lost Sussex County by 26 votes to Rochester. He did that without saturating the television market in Delmarva with advertising like Rochester. He did it the old fashioned way with retail politics and a good ground game. The bottom line is that if Sean Barney had done the right thing like Bryon Short and dropped out, Townsend may have won and we would have a true progressive going to DC in January instead of another Carperite.
I am comment rescuing that to its own post
The next cycle is already underway – 2018 is just around the corner, and it’s going to be a doozy.
The fight will be on for Carper’s seat. Look for Denn and Townsend, who’ll both be at the ends of terms (and probably Miller and Fuller just for the hell of it, because they’re so f’ing clueless). BHL could be “drafted” to run mid-term. If Markell is bored in DC, he could bigfoot it. The GOP will run some poor sap – maybe Simpler, to prep for his gubernatorial bid in 2020. Maybe Hocker.
Question, tho: What if Carper doesn’t retire in 2018? What if he declares his intent to stay on until 2024? Will anyone dare to primary him?
What do we see Navarro’s ambitions as? County Exec after Meyer? AG? (You don’t have to be a lawyer to hold the job …) The first Hispanic governor?
And what about Meyer? If he has a good first-term run as exec and doesn’t get bogged down, that sets him up for a 2020 run for something. Maybe Treasurer to succeed Simpler? Could he primary Carney for Gov? Is he that ambitious?