Posts by Dr. Eric Ostermeier
9th Time’s a Charm: Can Democrats Win Alabama’s US Senate Special Election?
Only five of 55 U.S. Senate partisan winning streaks of eight in a row have been halted in the subsequent contest during direct election era.
Read MoreDoes Two Make a Winning Streak?
Smart Politics recently examined how the Republican Party is hoping to win back-to-back U.S. Senate elections in Florida and Montana for the first time in the direct election era this cycle following Marco Rubio’s win last November and Steve Daines’ 2014 victory in the Treasure State. The GOP also has a chance to win two…
Read MoreTim Pawlenty and a Review of Ex-Governors Returning to Office
More than two-dozen former governors have been reelected back to their old seat over the last half-century.
Read MoreDino Rossi Could Notch Rare Trifecta with 2018 US House Bid
Only two major party candidates from Washington have lost general election bids for governor, U.S. Senate, and U.S. House since statehood.
Read MoreHelp Wanted: Open Minnesota Constitutional Offices Abound in 2018
If Lori Swanson does not run for a fourth term next year, Minnesota will have only one constitutional officer seek reelection for just the third time in over a century.
Read MoreNortham North of 50?
Democrat Ralph Northam has held a fairly consistent lead over Republican Ed Gillespie in polling of Virginia’s 2017 gubernatorial race since the early summer, but few surveys have shown that the sitting lieutenant governor has persuaded a majority of voters over to his side. Libertarian nominee and Mechanicsville attorney Cliff Hyra may not draw as…
Read MoreJanuary 2025 Here We Come
California Democrat Dianne Feinstein’s announcement that she will seek a sixth term in 2018 puts the lawmaker on track to become the oldest female U.S. Senator in history. Feinstein – at 84 years, 3 months, 20 days – is already the second oldest woman to serve in the chamber behind Georgia Democrat Rebecca Felton who…
Read MorePennsylvania to hold Nation-Leading 41st US House Special Election Since 1941
No state has held more special elections to the chamber since the year the U.S. entered WW II, and only four states have held them at a higher rate.
Read MoreBruce Rauner Faces Unusual Electoral Peril in Illinois
Republican governors of the Prairie State have lost only one of 13 renomination bids in the direct primary era – and none in 90 years.
Read MoreTom Price’s Historically Short HHS Tenure
Price lasted less than a quarter of the time on the job than the average HHS secretary.
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