Just a brief note here. The most significant thing I see in yesterday’s results.
Look. We all agonize over polls. I do and then resolutely turn my mind away from obsession. I imagine many of you do the same. And of course polls have been encouraging but mixed. Some of them are downright scary.
But, as the cliché has it, the only poll that counts is the election. And here’s my crucial takeaway:
In 3 straight elections since that awful night in ‘16, we have won major victories, often in Red Country. And we have won lots of amazing special elections.
Furthermore, these elections have generally reflected the sort of high turnout we need to win. I have never loved Kornacki so much as when he was nailing down the results last night and showing huge turnout, including the Cincinnati suburbs turning blue.
Always remember that the swath of voters who normally decide elections only get serious when the election is real. Not only do elections determine who holds power, they also show us the reality of the electorate.
Polls are important and instructive and strategically crucial. But the electorate breaks on election day as people suddenly pay attention and act on their real values.
And in ALL of these tests, Trumpism is getting repudiated. The trend is now 3 years long and utterly consistent. Trump’s GOP is holding a losing hand in the furnace of election night reality.
I take a lot of comfort in that as I respond to these polls. Election reality is with us.
(I know … no complacency, GOTV, work, work, work. Of course. But still …)