Everyone is fighting about Kansas. In particular, what it means that Republican Ron Estes won the U.S. House special election in Kansas’s 4th Congressional District on Tuesday over Democrat James Thompson by just 7 percentage points. CONT. Harry Enten, FiveThirtyEight Read more »
11 Things I Think I Think After the Kansas 4 Special Election
After a few months in the electoral desert, we finally have election results to digest from a competitive race, albeit an unexpected one. State Treasurer Ron Estes pulled out a 53-46 percent victory to keep the 4th District of Kansas in Republican hands. The 7-point margin is shocking considering Donald […] Read more »
The Kansas Election and the Stability of American Electoral Politics
American politics over the last 25 years or so seems as if it’s a roller coaster of sudden and unpredictable plot twists, each more improbable than the last…. The fortunes of the two parties have appeared to reverse with whiplash-inducing rapidity multiple times over this period, with neither side managing […] Read more »
A Republican Wins in Kansas. It’s Still a Loss of Sorts for the G.O.P.
This season’s special congressional elections are being heralded as a test of whether newly energized Democrats will fare better with an unpopular Republican president. So far, the Democrats are passing the test. CONT. Nate Cohn, New York Times Read more »
Why Republicans Are Worried About Kansas
No Democrat has won a House race in Kansas’s 4th Congressional District in over 20 years. It’s a Republican district, full stop. So, even a not-so-bad loss by Democrat James Thompson in Tuesday’s special election against Republican Ron Estes would be a worrying sign for the GOP. CONT. Harry Enten, […] Read more »
As Georgia Vote Nears, G.O.P. Asks if Ideological Purity Matters Anymore
… Mr. Trump’s takeover of the Republican Party has blurred the bright-line ideological distinctions that defined the right for the past eight years. Driven more by personal loyalty and a ravenous appetite to win than by any fixed political philosophy, the deal-cutting president has been received warmly by some mainstream […] Read more »