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The first major primary of the 2010 election season is largely being viewed as a referendum on politicians currently in office (incumbents) and voters' opinions of recently passed legislation.
Pennsylvania's Arlen Specter, who has served in the Senate for nearly three decades, was defeated in his state's Democratic primary by Rep. Joe Sestak. In Kentucky, Republican establishment favorite Trey Grayson was ousted by Rand Paul, who was favored by the "tea party" movement. Arkansas Democratic Sen. Blanche Lincoln, who has held her seat solidly for two terms, is facing a runoff with her closest opponent, Lieutenant Gov. Bill Halter, because neither had the 50 percent of the vote needed to clinch their party's nomination.
All eyes on Pennsylvania
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Pennyslvania Rep. Joe Sestak, pictured here, defeated long-serving Senator Arlen Specter in the state's Democratic primary. |
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Sen. Specter's defeat in Pennsylvania came as a shock to many, since he is one of the longest-serving senators who won the trust of numerous Pennsylvanians during his time in office. But, when his state's economy began to suffer, many of his constituents felt frustrated with politicians who weren't solving their most urgent problems.
Last year, sensing a shift in voter confidence, the formerly Republican Specter switched parties to become a Democrat because he thought he would have a better chance at winning the Democratic primary election. As a moderate politician, Specter's views largely fall in the middle of the political spectrum, aligning with aspects of both major parties' platforms. By declaring himself a Democrat, Specter attempted to gain the confidence of Pennsylvanians who voted for President Barack Obama. Specter's change of party also gave the Democrats a temporary 60 votes in the Senate, enough to prevent a Republican filibuster.
President Obama and other powerful Democrats campaigned for Specter in the primary race, but many voters were either not confident that Specter was truly on board with the Democratic agenda or were seeking to change the existing Washington establishment.
"Voters are sour. They are cranky. They're frustrated. And that energy level that we saw with President Obama in this state -- he won Pennsylvania by 10 percentage points, turned out a whole bunch of new voters -- we don't see that," Terry Madonna, the director of the Center for Politics and Public Affairs at Franklin and Marshall College, told the NewsHour's Judy Woodruff.
Tea party candidate gains ground
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A tea party candidate won the Republican Senate primary in Kentucky. The tea party advocates lower taxes and smaller government. |
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In Kentucky, Secretary of State Grayson, a candidate strongly backed by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and the Republican establishment, was handed defeat. Paul, his opponent, has declared himself a member of the "tea party," a conservative grassroots movement that preaches a small-government message. Paul supports limiting Congress's influence to the 17 powers originally granted to the legislative branch in Article 1, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution.
"This tea party movement is a message to Washington that we're unhappy and we want things done differently," Paul told supporters. "The mandate of our victory is huge."
Many political analysts viewed Paul's resounding victory as a referendum on the strength of the "tea party" movement and as a sign that Americans are frustrated with the ballooning national debt and the recently passed health care reform bill.
"I think...what it is, more than anything, is just this idea that Paul is the outsider. He's not part of the establishment. He's not part of the problem that brought us bailouts and not part of what has gone on in Washington with health care reform. He is completely from the outside," Joseph Gerth, a reporter for the Louisville Courier-Journal, told the NewsHour.
Major parties gauge prospects for November election
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Both the Republican and Democratic party establishments suffered some setbacks in the primary and are looking ahead to November's election. |
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Both Republicans and Democrats are analyzing what the first major primaries mean for their parties' prospects heading into the November election. Democrats are celebrating a victory in the only race between the major parties on Tuesday: a special election in Pennsylvania for the seat of Rep. John Murtha, who died in February.
Because Murtha's district in western Pennsylvania is majority Democratic but socially conservative, Republicans hoped to pick up his seat and use it as a bellwether, or an early sign, that swing voters will be inclined to vote Republican in November. Some Republicans say they lost the special election because more Democrats were at the polls because of the primary, putting the Republican candidate at a disadvantage. Some Democrats claim that the GOP's failure to win Murtha's seat shows that Republicans will not be able to gain seats in regions with similar demographics in November.
Whatever the reason, it's clear that both parties will be watching the major primary contests throughout the summer for more signs of voter trends and key issues. Other contested primaries leading up to November's election will be held June 8, August 3, August 10, August 24 and September 14.
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Joplin was able to rise from the ashes because of help from everyone. And I am eternally grateful to anyone who made that possible.
Tea Party Activists Protest Taxes, Big Government
