November 1, 2003
RISK & REWARD:
Some Clues to '04, However Faint, Are Set to Emerge (MICHAEL JANOFSKY, 11/01/03, NY Times)
While a handful of races for the statehouse may not serve as an unambiguous measure of President Bush's leadership -- even after Arnold Schwarzenegger's victory in California made him the nation's 27th Republican governor -- Mr. Bush plans a whirlwind of rallies on Saturday in Kentucky and Mississippi.Mr. Bush, who won Kentucky in 2000 by 16 percentage points over Al Gore, and Mississippi by 17, remains enormously popular in both states. His two appearances in each on Saturday could go a long way toward drawing undecided voters and a growing number of conservative Democrats to the Republican columns. The appearances could also hold rewards for Mr. Bush's own campaign, especially if the Republican candidates win.
Why does one suspect that a Democratic sweep would be portrayed as more unambiguous than a GOP sweep? Posted by Orrin Judd at November 1, 2003 7:30 AM
Man, I don't want to jinx anything but this week had good news for the GOP in both the Louisiana and Kentucky races. The 7.2% 3rd quarter numbers were also sweeet.
This reminds me of how the 1994 election formed with the NYC mayor's race, the N.J. governor's race, and the Virginia race in 1993.
Posted by: pchuck at November 1, 2003 12:49 PMFor the major media, if the Democrats win Mississippi, but lose Kentucky and Louisiana, then Mississippi is the important state; if they win Louisiana, but lost Mississippi and Kentucky, then Louisiana is the important state; if they win Kentucky, but lose the other two than it's important, and if they lose all three, then the elections will have no bearing whatsoever on the 2004 elections...
Posted by: John at November 1, 2003 1:38 PM