Watching the coverage of the mid-term elections this evening can be a bewildering run through a spectrum of emotions, colored as they are by my current desire for a rational GOP to counterbalance the Democrats, which at the moment doesn’t exist – thus my desire to see the Republican Party burn to the ground, so that it may be reconstructed, preferably on lines that do not include such personalities as Pat Robertson and his ilk.
Democratic gains in Minnesota’s Representatives, as well as retention of both Senatorial seats by unexpectedly comfortable margins (in Smith’s case), has acted to restore, to some extent, my faith in local American citizens; on the national scene, the losses by Democratic Senators Heitkamp of North Dakota and Bill Nelson of Florida, as well as Democratic candidates Abram’s apparent loss to Kemp in the Georgia gubernatorial race and Gillum’s apparent loss to DeSantis in the Florida gubernatorial race, are dismaying as none of the victors are, in my opinion, of the high moral character necessary to be the leaders they must be in their positions. In a phrase, they seem to just be Trump sycophants, incapable of independent judgment.
Seeking more positive emotions, it may be tempting to note that Democratic Representative Conor Lamb, who just months ago had won a special election by a whisker, easily won re-election, but his district was redrawn between the two votes. It’s an apples and oranges thing. Don’t go there.
So for reassurance, it may be worth noting that current Kansas Secretary of State and GOP gubernatorial nominee Kris Kobach (R-KA), who has been mentioned before on this blog for his many claims of unsubstantiated voter fraud, seems to have lost his high profile gubernatorial run in traditionally conservative Kansas. Last I saw, it wasn’t even close. Is it possible that Kansas will become a Democratic stronghold? If one believes that we can learn from our mistakes, if pain can change our minds and our ideologies, then it’s not out of the realm of possibility, as Kansas hosted the Brownback debacle of the last few years. They have a new Governor-elect from the Democratic Party, and I noticed in the news chyrons that at one or two Republican Representatives from Kansas had lost their re-election campaigns. Now, these could be ephemeral signs, as perhaps those seats will flip right back to the Republican column at the next opportunity. One might argue that’s what happened tonight in Minnesota.
BUT if ruby-red Kansas becomes the historical crack in the Republican Party’s armor, I think we’ll know why and not be surprised.
Elections have consequences. That’s why we vote, and we vote thoughtfully, not in a rigid, ideological manner.
Know hope.
