November 7th, 2016:
Almost a week after once again being soundly defeated in the Presidential election, the Republican party is trying to pick up the pieces and asking questions of how it will be a viable national party in the future. Four years after losing an election they thought they could win against Barack Obama, this time the GOP had no illusions of winning going into election day as Hillary Clinton soundly defeated Marco Rubio 383-155 in the electoral college and by 8% in the popular vote. The first female President-elect, Mrs. Clinton and her running mate Brian Schweitzer were able to expand the electoral map for the Democratic Party, capturing Arizona, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, and North Carolina after those states had voted for Romney in 2012. 2016 marked the second election in a row in which the Republican standard bearer could not win his own home state, with Rubio losing Florida. The Republicans did manage to win Vice-Presidential candidate Nikki Haley's home state of South Carolina.
Democratic Senate and House candidates rode the coattails of the Clinton-Schweitzer ticket to expand upon their majorities in the Senate and House of Representatives. The Democrats picked up 5 seats in the Senate and 20 seats in the House. Of particular note were losses by Republican Senators John McCain, Chuck Grassley, and Rand Paul, and House members Michelle Bachmann and Paul Ryan. Notable victories by Democrats included Gabrielle Gifford's return to the House of Representatives.
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