Democrats are claiming a surge of activism driven by fiery opposition to President Trump, offering hope for recovery in 2018 to a party demoralized after steep losses in the 2016 elections.
Democratic officials point to voter turnout in a handful recent special elections to fill vacant seats in state legislatures as evidence of the budding turnaround.
In a Feb. 25 Delaware senate race, the victorious Democrat received over 1,000 votes more than the party's nominee did in the 2014 midterm. That's noteworthy because turnout in specials tends to be sharply lower than in general elections. Plus, the vote occurred on a Saturday.
In a Connecticut senate race decided on Tuesday, the Democrat lost. But the ruby red district that went 2-1 for the Republican in the November general election, and the Democratic nominee lost by only about 2,000 votes, a net improvement of around 14,000 votes.
Democrats are watching to see if this trend carries over into an upcoming special election to fill a Republican-leaning, suburban Atlanta House seat, the off-year Virginia governor's race, and ultimately, the 2018 midterms.
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05.05.2024