Democrat wins Governor of Louisianna?!

[DrPizza]

Louisianna - red state. Duck Dynasty endorsed the Republican nominee, Cruz endorsed the Republican nominee... Democratic nominee says he's going to expand Medicaid - Republicans refused to, because, Obama. Is this more evidence of how out of touch the Republican party has become with their extremism?

Louisiana voters just told the Republican Party “hell no” with the blowout victory of Democratic John Bel Edwards over GOP favorite David Vitter. The runoff election results put Edwards ahead by almost 10%, a solid loss for the Senator Vitter’s bid to replace “Bobby” Jindal in the governor’s office.
This election season has been riddled with scandals. From prostitutes to an accused love child, the race had become little more than a circus at the end. But what likely made this race land in the Democratic camp was Vitter’s attempt to claim that Syrian refugees caused the attacks in Paris. The backlash against Vitter has now cost him, and his party, dearly at the polls.
Vitter had endorsements from Ted Cruz and Duck Dynasty’s Willie Robinson, he was supported by conservative voters, so being in the South, it should not have been a tough race, even with the scandals. But instead, celebrating victory is the Democrat.
Governor-elect Edwards has pledged to sign the Obamacare Medicaid expansion, giving medical coverage for an estimated half-million Louisiana citizens. Beyond this, he is showing a rejection of the Republican Party by the American voter. That he won so handily in a state which has been dominated for many years by Republican politics could reflect a weariness of GOP rhetoric, and a desire for new leadership.

The problem we find in politics is that when one party dominates, it becomes complacent. By having succeeded in the past, it rests on its laurels, and then fails to adapt as times, and voters change. The Vitter was running on a campaign which was more appropriate to 2005 than 2015. The past ten years have seen a dramatic shift in the electorate, as Baby Boomers began to die off and Millennials came of voting age. The reality is the GOP is continuing to campaign on the tactics engineered by Richard Nixon and Lee Atwater. Vitter’s attempt to implicate those fleeing a warzone as terrorists just does not work anymore.
If Vitter could not win in Louisiana, then what hope will the party have in the Presidential election next year?

http://reverbpress.com/politics/louisiana-governor-race-vitter-edwards/


I've seen a couple other articles that blame his prostitution scandal for the loss - Hellloooooo, that was in 2007, and he's been elected as senator since then. I've seen mention that it's because people were anti-Jindal. Yet Jindal refused to endorse Vitter and the two did not get along at all. Not to mention, there were two other Republicans to choose from other than Vitter.

 

[Indus]

Nah hookers has nothing to do with it.. since half the state uses them.

It has everything to do with trickle down economics.

http://www.forwardprogressives.com/...onstrated-how-trickle-down-economics-is-scam/

 

[Moonbeam]

Hope this means the fever is broken and CBDs will be seen more and more as a danger to the nation. You can't function in reality if you are smoking delusions and the defect in the conservative brain is a master at creating them.

 

[Jhhnn]

Voters may have made the right choice for the wrong reasons but Medicaid expansion will be a good thing for a lot of people in Louisiana.

Louisiana isn't solid red as Mary Landrieu served 3 terms as Senator until defeated in 2014.

 

[trenchfoot]

Good news.

Now, if the folks of that state can vote their state legislature over to the Dems, and if the Dems can show positive changes for their middle class and their poor, it just might kick start other vulnerable states in the south to follow Louisiana's example and take back their gov't from the select few who own it at present.

 

[Strk]

Nah hookers has nothing to do with it.. since half the state uses them.

It has everything to do with trickle down economics.

http://www.forwardprogressives.com/...onstrated-how-trickle-down-economics-is-scam/

May for some great responses though....

Either way, the whole rejection of the medicaid expansion was dumb. I believe it was Kasich who made the obvious statement of why turn down money that came from them anyways? (well, something like that)

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

A GOP governor in Louisiana is an exception, not the rule. With a Democrat LA is returning to business as usual.

 

[MongGrel]

A GOP governor in Louisiana is an exception, not the rule. With a Democrat LA is returning to business as usual.

It's been 50/50 more or less since 1980.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

It's been 50/50 more or less since 1980.

And before that it wasn't even close. What makes 1980 significant?

 

[ElFenix]

And before that it wasn't even close. What makes 1980 significant?

something about the breakup of the solid south and former 'conservative democrats' becoming 'conservative republicans.' same cadre, same ideas, different party. see: perry, rick

 

[CPA]

The GOP won the Kentucky governor race just earlier this month - a state that has only had one other republican governor in 4 decades! Things don't always go the way they are planned or expected and it was nothing to do with "extremism".

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

something about the breakup of the solid south and former 'conservative democrats' becoming 'conservative republicans.' same cadre, same ideas, different party. see: perry, rick

Rick Perry changed the face of southern voting in 1980?

Feel free to explain.

 

[MongGrel]

NM.

 

[UglyCasanova]

I think it is less a matter of the state shifting to blue but rather the fact that Vitter truly is a scumbag. It's not just the prostitution scandal, but his tactics against Dardenne and Angelle, his lies about the Paris attack letter, a PI he hired being arrested for spying, his not showing up for debates, and I'm sure a host of other issues. The state hates Jindal, and while Vitter and Jinal aren't exactly chums their governance style is too close for many to stomach and that was always in the background.

The vote really boils down to being a vote for one thing only...being against David Vitter.

 

[ElFenix]

Rick Perry changed the face of southern voting in 1980?

Feel free to explain.

No, Rick Perry is an example of a democrat switching parties without much change in policy

 

[MongGrel]

No, Rick Perry is an example of a democrat switching parties without much change in policy

See Charlie Crist also.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Crist

He was more or less a Conservative Democrat those days even when he was a Republican, he jumped ship to go Independent later.

Rubio emerged from that race.

He probably should have went Democrat then, he barely lost to Rick Scott (Skeletor) for Governor.

Which kinda sucks, as much (alleged) Medical Fraud that Rick Scott has been involved in he probably should be in prison, but he's the Gov.

 

[sportage]

Just shows how unpredictable things really are, and the fickle voters with their mood swings this election cycle.
I think Vitter lost because people just had enough of Vitter, not that the democrat was the "in" thing to do now.

I wouldn't read too much into this, especially any trend in the south.
Obama is still greatly hated and republicans have a huge advantage.
Hillary isn't exactly moms home baked apple pie either.

The fact Matt Bevin won Kentucky when he was behind in the polls, and Vitter now losing, might be a clue that purity and evangelical christians are deciding these elections.
If that is true, democrats are doomed overall.

 

[JEDIYoda]

A GOP governor in Louisiana is an exception, not the rule. With a Democrat LA is returning to business as usual.

<-- another GOP apologist....

 

[Nebor]

A state that subsists off federal welfare votes in a guy who promises them more federal welfare? Shocking.

 

[UglyCasanova]

I've seen a couple other articles that blame his prostitution scandal for the loss - Hellloooooo, that was in 2007, and he's been elected as senator since then.

In 2010 he made his campaign as a referendum on the Obama boogeyman and rode in on a tidal wave of republican victories. That didn't work this time.

I wouldn't discount the effects of the prostitution scandal though. By itself he could have still pulled it off, but the sleaziness that kept coming up in his campaign coupled with the prostitution scandal just left many to see him as a politician who was arrogant, lacked any character, and simply couldn't be trusted (and yes I see the humor in that statement).

 

[MongGrel]

A state that subsists off federal welfare votes in a guy who promises them more federal welfare? Shocking.

Not sure where you get that from, NY, TX, and CA seem to have a much higher rate of welfare than LA to me.

http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/compare_state_welfare_spend

 

[DrPizza]

Not sure where you get that from, NY, TX, and CA seem to have a much higher rate of welfare than LA to me.

http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/compare_state_welfare_spend

I'm not sure how that compares per capita. Don't forget, NY, TX, and CA have much, much larger populations compared to LA.

Regardless, I think his point was that LA receives far more federal money than it pays in to the Federal government - billions more. Those other three states, if I'm not mistaken, pay in more money.

 

[theeedude]

Southerners starting to wisen up to where 40 years of getting Republicans elected has gotten them?

 

[Jaskalas]

Democratic nominee says he's going to expand Medicaid

Maybe there are a lot of sick people in Louisiana... :whiste:

 

[theeedude]

If he can expand Medicaid, that's going to save so many lives in Louisiana. From just one vote.