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Washington GOPers Blame National Party for McKenna's Loss
1
As it turns out, Rob McKenna is a Republican. Their policies are less popular, so, he lost.
Seeing one more ad, or having somebody knock on my door to speak at me in person, is not going to change Republican policy. It's true. Apparently, losing at the polls will not change their policies. It's also unlikely that blaming the amount of money they did or didn't have will change their policies.
Maybe they should take a look at their policies.
Seeing one more ad, or having somebody knock on my door to speak at me in person, is not going to change Republican policy. It's true. Apparently, losing at the polls will not change their policies. It's also unlikely that blaming the amount of money they did or didn't have will change their policies.
Maybe they should take a look at their policies.
2
I’m a Dem PCO and walking my precinct is part of my job .. I’m unaware of a Republican PCO in my precinct. GOTV activities require cajoling and reminding ... but we had issues that people really got behind this time. I walked precincts w/o PCO’s and encountered voters who were excited to vote, were aware of what was on the ballot ... despite what the national news media says, I encountered very little apathy.
3
If Dems are so well organized in our state, why is the state senate in danger of switching to Republican? Serious question.
4
@3 I'd suggest poor recruitment. It's not like Senate districts are any different than House districts. So you'd expect a pretty similar distribution.
Also, the Democratic GOTV effort focused mostly on turning out Inslee voters. In a race this close at the top of the ticket, they didn't have the luxury of discriminating at the local race level. So local Democratic candidates in close races wouldn't have benefited as much from GOTV as Inslee.
Also, the Democratic GOTV effort focused mostly on turning out Inslee voters. In a race this close at the top of the ticket, they didn't have the luxury of discriminating at the local race level. So local Democratic candidates in close races wouldn't have benefited as much from GOTV as Inslee.
5
Jay Inslee actually called me personally during his campaign. He already had my vote and some of my hard-earned cash as a donation, but the fact that he, and not a robot or surrogate, called to ask for my vote was impressive to me.
6
Every person i spoke with about the governor's race, except the pundit class, mentioned early-on something akin to: "well, even if one detested Inslee, you can't vote for McKenna because of that tea-party rogue stance he took against Obamacare"
so i really think that was one of the major issues.
so i really think that was one of the major issues.
7
"Uh-huh. Let's be clear. The Republicans didn't lack for money. Rob McKenna and the "independent" campaigns supporting him outspent their Democratic counterparts by about a million and half dollars. So McKenna and the state GOP had plenty of cash available to spend on GOTV. They just didn't."
Goldy, hasn't it been universally more expensive to get a Republican elected to state-wide or national office (where gerrymandering can't be used to control costs), for the past decade or so? Those numbers should exist somewhere, right?
Goldy, hasn't it been universally more expensive to get a Republican elected to state-wide or national office (where gerrymandering can't be used to control costs), for the past decade or so? Those numbers should exist somewhere, right?
8
Considering the closeness of many races, and the exorbitant amounts of money thrown into TV & radio spots by both sides, one has to truly wonder whether it's really worth the cost. I think many voters (and potential voters) would say they're generally turned off by political ads, which tend to go negative against the opposition. If that's actually true, then direct-address, door-to-door GOTV type activities would definitely seem to be the wiser investment.
9
Can independent expenditures like those by the Republican Governors' Association be used on GOTV? Serious question, because election law can get sticky on issues like that.
10
@8 *Maybe* in the case of lists of people known to be sympathetic. But I did a few phone-bank-from-home calls to Ohio or PA to a list of numbers I downloaded in 2004 or 2008 (I forget), and I gave up after a few because people there were NOT AMUSED at being the focus of so much attention. Not sure but I thought that was supposed to be a list of Dems. They might be a little better about someone showing up on their doorstep, but I'm skeptical.
11
I think part of the problem was the WSRP's attitude. They were so certain they'd win that why in the hell would the national party come and help them? It's amusing to think that a campaign that got out the white board to insist they'd won the election after a 40k vote deficit opened under them thinks they expressed enough need to the national party.
No, the WSRP is a novelty in this state due to terrible leadership. Kirby Wilbur, Randy Pepple and Larry Stickney are terrible at what they do and should be booted.
Take the silly up-and-comers in the party with 'em. The WSRP's young voter outreach efforts were hindered by doe-eyed 20-something dullards who basically nodded along with the top leadership without providing a useful means of capturing the 18-35 vote. "Newspapers like McKenna! Rob has gay people working for him! Folks from ASUW like Rob! Chicks for Rob! Stay the course on social issues, Rob! You're doing fine!"
No, the WSRP is a novelty in this state due to terrible leadership. Kirby Wilbur, Randy Pepple and Larry Stickney are terrible at what they do and should be booted.
Take the silly up-and-comers in the party with 'em. The WSRP's young voter outreach efforts were hindered by doe-eyed 20-something dullards who basically nodded along with the top leadership without providing a useful means of capturing the 18-35 vote. "Newspapers like McKenna! Rob has gay people working for him! Folks from ASUW like Rob! Chicks for Rob! Stay the course on social issues, Rob! You're doing fine!"
12
Honestly... I don't think this was so much an issue over policies. It seemed to me McKenna was doing what he could to distance himself from some of his previous, more right-wing/idiotic statements and like would've tacked much more to the middle as a governor.
I think he really lost because he acted like a little bitch. In the debates and in his commercials. A whiney little bitch. Compare that to Inslee's lovable lug image, and there ya go.
I think he really lost because he acted like a little bitch. In the debates and in his commercials. A whiney little bitch. Compare that to Inslee's lovable lug image, and there ya go.
13
I was with you, Goldy, right up until,
Glad he won --voted for him-- he was right on all the issues.
But as the debates showed, on a strictly "good at being a candidate" basis, we need to get a grip and be honest with ourselves: McKenna kinda walked all over Inslee for most of that race.
...and in Inslee, they had a better candidate.
Glad he won --voted for him-- he was right on all the issues.
But as the debates showed, on a strictly "good at being a candidate" basis, we need to get a grip and be honest with ourselves: McKenna kinda walked all over Inslee for most of that race.
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