The Election: Who Were the Real Winners and Losers?
Saturday, November 06, 2010
Beyond the candidates and the campaigns, who were the real winners and losers of the election? GoLocalProv’s team of MINDSETTERS™—Republicans, Democrats, and independents—gave us their take. Here is what they had to say.
WINNERS
Teachers’ Unions - They want binding arbitration badly and Chafee has said he will do that.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTLiz Roberts – She showed that she was in no real danger and she is a winner because Caprio didn’t win the Governor’s office, leaving the door open for her to reform her image and take a stab at that office in four years.
Rhode Islanders – No more Don Carcieri.
Organized Campaigns – The results are just another example of candidates who have their act together (no matter the party) win. Like Dawson Hodgson in North Kingstown.
Bob Healey - With Healey garnering more votes than Chafee, the General Assembly will finally consider the viability of the Lieutenant Governor’s Office and develop a plan to have the position on the ballot as a team ticket with the Governor. Not quite what Healey had in mind, but it's reform nonetheless.
Democratic Party - Finally garnering two female General Officers! The GOP has a history of supporting female candidates, so it’s nice to see the Democratic Party FINALLY getting into the groove.
RI Citizens for the Arts - Thought they were losers when the gubernatorial candidates canceled their scheduled debate. In the end, the one-on-one candidate interviews that were transmitted to members electronically were outstanding, informative, and probably reached a greater audience. There were also documents for accountability after the election.
WINNER and LOSER – Rhode Island Republican Party
Why the GOP was a winner: Gained significantly this year and lost some races by a small margin. For the first time in years, the RI GOP can be a viable party in this state. Many candidates worked tirelessly to get their message to voters and many won. Look at how many more seats they have now compared to before and on that basis they almost doubled their numbers. You can't change RI overnight – it’s too local - but if the GOP keeps the steam going they will see significant gains. In other words, you can win by losing. Better to have eight more GA members than the Governor, honestly.
Why the GOP was a loser: The multi-candidate phenomenon that peppered races from local council to state office had a direct impact on the GOP's ability to win because the third-party candidate in a race usually takes votes away from the Republican. Looking at the General Assembly races, the GOP win column would have been much higher if the third-party candidate's votes were combined with the Republican candidate’s total. The worst thing that could have happened from a GOP perspective was the Moderate Party garnering the percentage of votes needed to become a recognized party in this state. Which was exactly what happened.
LOSERS
The RI Tea Party - Showed how little of Rhode Island they actually represent. Yes, Doreen Costa did win one state legislative seat for herself—but it was against a rude and crude Democratic incumbent who was too elderly and frail to knock on doors. We’ll see if they can keep their energy up, and whether Doreen loses any of her outsider cred.
Frank Caprio, Sr. - At least he still has his TV show.
Traditional Parties – With neither Republicans nor Democrats holding the governor’s seat, independent voters delivered a stiff rebuke to the political establishment. Traditional party identities were thrown out the door when the Democratic base abandoned its nominee, who, in turn, flirted with the idea of being a Republican. Thing got even more confusing with the Moderate Party in the mix and the GOP's endorsement of the Cool Moose candidate for Lieutenant Governor.
The Rhode Island Taxpayer – If you think you’re already paying too much in taxes, just wait until Lincoln Chafee takes office. On his Web site where it lists how the one percent tax increase will affect us, there are millions of dollars affecting everyday items. That affects the poorest among us the most and if that's the fiscal policy he is going to be using over the next four years, taxpayers should be scared.
Trade Unions – Where were they? The public sector unions made themselves heard and felt, not so much from the trade unions.
Moderate Party – Won the necessary 5-percent threshold to maintain party status, but ended up causing conservatives to lose the race for Governor and Attorney General.
The Absent Registered Voters - To have the lowest rate of voter participation (49 percent) since 1998, in such an important election cycle for our state (especially in these economically challenged times), is disheartening.
Sound Bite Robo Candidates - We’re too small of a state to not know these folks in “real life”…and yet, that is how it felt. Candidates are way too scripted. Maybe we need to ask different questions???
Social Conservatives – Made gay marriage their issue and lost badly. Supporters of same-sex marriage got more than 30 of their candidates elected to the General Assembly. With people like Chafee in the governor’s office and Fox all-but-assured to be the next Speaker, gay marriage will soon be a reality.
