Decision 2006 - Democrats Sweep
 

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by www.nbc.com

Democrats regained control of the House of Representatives for the first time in 12 years Tuesday night and made strong gains in the Senate, according to NBC News projections.

At midnight EST, NBC reported that the Democrats had 235 seats to 200 seats for the Republicans in the House.

Democrats cast the results as a sharp rebuke to President Bush and promised big changes in Washington.

"Last week, the vice president said [that] regardless of the outcome, the administration would go full speed ahead in the same direction," Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, who was well on her way to a landslide re-election in New York, told cheering supporters. "Well, I think the American people have said, 'Not so fast!'"

In tightly contested races being watched closely for their indication of the national mood, Democrats were all but running the board. NBC News projections showed the Democrats picking up more than 30 seats in the House, well more than the 15 they needed to regain control and install Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California as the nation’s first female speaker.

However, with winners projected in more than half of the nation's U.S. Senate races, Democrats had made gains but still had not won control.

Democrats needed to pick off at least three more Republicans from among competitive races in Virginia, Tennessee, Montana and Missouri to capture a Senate majority.

NBC News reported that Republican Bob Corker was the apparent winner in Tennessee over Democratic Rep. Harold Ford. The other races were still too close to call at midnight ET.

Sen. Joe Lieberman, the 2000 Democratic vice presidential candidate, resurrected his career by running, and winning, as an independent, MSNBC reported.

Lieberman managed to beat businessman Ned Lamont, who won the Democratic primary by hammering the incumbent over his support for the Iraq war. Several prominent Democrats had backed Lamont after his primary victory.

But Lieberman ran a strong third-party campaign -- even picking up support from many Republican voters, who turned their backs on their party’s little-known candidate.

Lamont had conceded Tuesday, NBC Connecticut station WVIT-TV reported.

At midnight EST, these other races had projected winners:

Arizona: Incumbent Republican John Kyl over Democrat Jim Pederson.
California: Incumbent Democrat Dianne Feinstein over Republican Dick Mountjoy.
Delaware: Incumbent Democrat Thomas Carper over Republican Jan Ting.
Florida: Incumbent Democrat Bill Nelson over Republican Katherine Harris, a two-term House member who made her name overseeing Florida’s recount in the disputed 2000 presidential election. Her campaign was marked by a lack of money, staff changes and little support from party leaders.
Hawaii: Incumbent Democrat Daniel Akaka over Republican Cynthia Thielen.
Indiana: Republican Sen. Dick Lugar, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, coasted to a sixth term. Democrats did not field a candidate against Lugar and he took a 7-to-1 lead in early returns against Libertarian candidate Steve Osborn.
Maryland: Democrat Ben Cardin over Republican Michael Steele in a race to replace retiring Democrat Paul Sarbanes.
Massachusetts: Democrat Ted Kennedy secured an eighth term, defeating Republican Ken Chase.
Michigan: Incumbent Democrat Debbie Stabenow over Republican Michael Bouchard.
Minnesota: Democrat Amy Klobuchar over Republican Mark Kennedy.
Mississippi: Incumbent Republican Trent Lott over Democrat Erik Fleming.
Maine: Incumbent Republican Olympia Snowe over Democrat Jean Hay Bright.
Nevada: Incumbent Republican John Ensign over Democrat Jack Carter.
New Mexico: Incumbent Democrat Jim Bingaman over Republican Alan McCulloch.
New York: Incumbent Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton over Republican John Spencer.
North Dakota: Incumbent Democrat Kent Conrad over Republican Dwight Grotberg.
Texas: Incumbent Republican Kay Bailey Hutchison over Democrat Barbara Ann Radnofsky.
Utah: Incumbent Republican Orrin Hatch over Democrat Pete Ashdown.
Vermont: Political independent Bernie Sanders won the seat now held by another independent, retiring Sen. James Jeffords.
Washington: Incumbent Democrat Maria Cantwell over Republican Mike McGavick.
West Virginia: Re-elected to a ninth term was Democratic Sen. Robert Byrd, who at 88 is the oldest and longest serving senator in the nation’s history, 48 years.
Wisconsin: Incumbent Democrat Herb Kohl over Republican Robert Large.
Wyoming: Incumbent Republican Craig Thomas over Democart Dale Groutage.
In Virginia, the race between Republican Sen. George Allen and Democrat Jim Webb, a former Republican, was still too close to call.

Democrats See Huge Gains In House

In Pennsylvania, longtime incumbent U.S. Rep. Curt Weldon lost to challenger Joe Sestak, while disgraced former Republican U.S. Rep. Bob Ney's seat was taken by Democratic challenger Zack Space in Ohio.

In New Hampshire, Democrat Paul Hodes defeated six-term Republican U.S. Rep. Charles Bass in the state's 2nd Congressional District.

The race marks the first time since 1990 that a Democrat will hold the seat in New Hampshire's 2nd District. Hodes led for most of the night and had a 10-point lead when Bass called him to concede, WMUR-TV in Manchester, N.H., reported.

"The people of New Hampshire are ready to move forward in a new direction, for a new tomorrow," Hodes said. "They have voted for change."

Hodes took the race as the possibility grew of Democrats taking over the U.S. House. In several races across the country, Democrats picked up seats, although it was not immediately clear if they would gain a majority.

"It's a great night to be a Democrat in New Hampshire," Hodes said. "It's a great night to be a Democrat in the United States of America."

Polls conducted before the election in New Hamphisre indicated that many voters were placing a high importance on the war in Iraq and the Bush administration.

Carol Shea-Porter, who unseated incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Jeb Bradley, made Iraq a cornerstone of her campaign.

"We have said all along that we need to work together," Shea-Porter said. "We're in crisis right now, but crisis is also an opportunity."

Shea-Porter conducted a grassroots campaign with little help from the national Democratic Party after early polls showed her as a long shot.

"Of all the things that happened tonight, this was perhaps the biggest surprise, and it's an indication of the scope of this defeat," Republican analyst Tom Rath told WMUR-TV.

Meanwhile, Republican congressmen in Indiana and Kentucky lost fierce battles with Democratic challengers.

In an early indication of the uphill battle Republicans face, GOP Rep. John Hostettler lost to Democrat Brad Ellsworth. Hostettler was seeking his seventh term in Indiana's 8th Congressional District.

Indiana Republicans Chris Chocola and Mike Sodrel were also beaten in a wave of early House defeats for the GOP.

In Kentucky, John Yarmuth, a liberal former newspaper columnist, defeated incumbent Bush loyalist Anne Northup.

Republican Rep. Nancy Johnson in Connecticut also lost, and two of her GOP colleagues there, Rob Simmons and Christopher Shays, were fighting for their political lives.

Vermont had a new Democratic House member in Peter Welch, who will replace Bernie Sanders -- an independent who sided with Democrats. Sanders left the House to run successfully for the Senate.

Democrats Pick Up Governorships

Democrats also saw gains in the 36 governor's races across the country.

After a bruising fight that included attack ads and an FBI probe, Democrat Bill Ritter beat Republican Bob Beauprez for Colorado's open governor's seat, retaking the office for Democrats for the first time in eight years.

Massachusetts Democrat Deval Patrick became only the second black ever elected chief executive of a state. He beat Republican Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey.

Neighboring Connecticut had turned in the only Republican governorship victory of the evening. Gov. Jodi Rell, who took over two years ago when John Rowland resigned in scandal, won handily in a re-election bid.

In Ohio, Ted Strickland easily beat Ken Blackwell.

Democrats in four states also won re-election: Phil Bredesenin Tennessee, Ed Rendell in Pennsylvania, John Lynch in New Hampshire, and Rod Blagojevich in Illinois.

Full Results Table: http://www.electoral-vote.com/

Senate

Nov. 08Pickups: Missouri, Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island

Projected New House*: 231 Democrats 197 Republicans 7 Ties

* Where no independent polls exist, the 2004 election results have been used.

Dem pickups: AZ-03 AZ-05 AZ-08 CA-11 CO-07 CT-05 FL-16 FL-22 IA-01 IA-02 IN-02 IN-08 IN-09 KS-02 KY-03 LA-01 MN-01 NC-11 NH-01 NH-02 NY-20 NY-24 OH-18 PA-04 PA-07 PA-10 PA-16 TX-22 WI-08

GOP pickups:
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For more about the election coverage and other related topics vist these links:

Effects of 2006 Election on the 2008 Election
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15610350

Full Election Results
http://election.cbsnews.com/campaign2006/index.shtml

The Senate Situtation
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Vote2...2639247&page=1

:w00t: Indulge me while I do a little endzone dance :dance: :yahoo: :xirokrotima: :mbounce: :mbounce_2: .

OK, I feel better now :). It appears that the Dems will control the Senate as well as the House. I just hope they're serious about changing the direction of our Country, Iraq, and our Forign Policy and don't muck it up. It'll take both the Reps and the Dems.*fingers crossed*

It would be nice to see our Govt. get it right for a change:idea:.

Here's to a brighter tomorrow :cheers:

you guys want a laugh?..

http://www.techsupportforum.com/conv...ames-webb.html

This just in, Webb wins in VA. Democrats now control Senate, House, and have majority of Governerships!!!!
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15620405/?GT1=8717

Also Rumsfield resigns as Secretary of Defense.(About time!!!)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15622266/?GT1=8717

Also this time the Democrats have political agenda. Thery are not just anti-bush. They can make a difference for this great country of ours. And the recently elected Illinois(YEAH!!!) senator Barack Obama, looks very promising. He will one day run for president. He may even run in the 2008 election.

LOL, Their eating crow now:D. Drudge called the Congressional Pages "Beasts" when the Foley page scandal broke......Rumsfeld got his walking papers today(better late than never I guess). Even Limbaugh is distancing himself from the Republican Party and he'd sell his last viagr* if it would get them a vote(like rats leaving a sinking ship).

I wonder who'll be next to go ;).

Just curious what is the agenda the Democrats have. I am a Democrat (conservative yes) but the democratic party has had no agenda for many years other than tax and spend and that is why the Republicans have been having their way for quite a while. If they try the same old crap again the Republicans will be in control again before long.

hopefully GWB

re: his actions on 9/11...strong leader?...wtf???

what type of 'leader' continues to read nursery rhymes to kindergardners for 7 minutes after he has been told 'sir, the nation is under attack"?????????????

OMFG...and then he takes a pre-sheduled route back to AirForceOne and flies a pre-planned path....hmmmm..skipping all conspiracy theories, this is just plain idiotic, and not in any way acceptable as our leader...

you know what a real leader would have done?...immediately, and politely, excused himself from the room..run like hell to his limo...told the escorts to immediately 'improvise' a route to the plane..while in the limo made contact with all military commanders applicable and started making plans of action..then once in the plane and possesion of the nuclear football verified, make a totally random flight path and stayed in the air until things were truly sorted out...

our 'strong leader', by the official record, took a completely different course of action..one which could be termed as weak at best, and **** near treasonous at worst...

dunno about your theory there grandpa..sure, the super rich got some nice tax breaks, and so did ppl with children...but I am neither (my daughter is 22 and out of the house), and I really didn't notice any change in my total tax rate...total taxes including local taxes...

the dems left office with a record surplus, and Bush has given us a record deficit...all things considered, I'd rather have my monies 'wasted' on social services than going to finance a war and making the profiteers rich beyond their wildest dreams...

Only thing I am saying is my party has one theory Tax and spend when the Democrats are in office our taxes go up we receive less of our earned income. Business profits drop hiring drops unemployment generally goes up people get tired of it and vote Republican. At least that has been the way it has been through my lifetime. Way back in the past the Democrats were more Conservative they had some good programs. In the beginning welfare was one.

Then the liberal Democrats took over the party and everything started falling apart and going to hell. You can only take so much from the working class of people and give to the people who play the social program's for all they are worth before people rebel. There are truly needy people who need a hand but our liberal Democrat party gets so far out of hand with social programs that they have raised whole generations of people that do not know how to do anything but live off of the social programs. And that is not right.

I was just asking what new agenda us democrats have. Most of the campaigning I saw was pretty much the same as the last few decades. If this is true it won't be long before the Republicans are back in control.

Some of the Dems that won ran on a more conservative platform. So hopefully that's a trend that will be maintained in the future. If they don't, and return to their old ways they will find themselves out of office soon enough.

I consider myself a moderate liberal and hope the Dems govern from the center. I think compromise is essential to move this country forward. Hopefully Bush got the message and will work with the Congress and maybe he can finally be the uniter he claimed to be instead of the divider he really is. But who knows?

Honesty, Integrity, Moral Character, are what I want from my Govt. Not foolish stubbornness and pandering to special interests.......We'll see :confused:.