Hello Everyone,
I have been thinking about several things concerning the Mid Terms, which are now mostly over with. I need some help trying to figure some things out with respect to these and future elections.
I started my diary writing career here in 2016 trying to make sense out of Hillary’s loss, after being a lurker here for many years. I needed help wrapping my brain around it, and I reached out to the brain trust here. I am hoping to do so again now.
First off let me say that this is in no way meant to be a negative diary — there is WAY too much of that around here! I am extremely pleased how we overperformed in the Mid Terms in general, although there is some heartbreak. Living in Texas I am beyond heartbroken over Beto. However, on the whole, we have much to be proud of and we should take the victory laps where we can.
But I am going to vent a little bit.
I need some help trying to understand some things, and I am hoping you can help me to do so.
The main issues are:
How can we increase voter turnout?
How can we get Democrats to turn out in the Mid Terms?
How can we break through the wall to actually get to some Republicans?
Are certain states just gone?
A little bit about me — both of my parents were in politics, so politics is in my blood, as I have been following it since I was a small child. I know more political statistics than I do sport statistics, and I visit this site several times a day. I have also lived back and forth between Florida and Texas for most of my life, and I have seen the best and worst of both places.
I want to ask the four questions above in terms of both of these states.
Voter Turnout — In Broward County, one of the bluest counties in the state, turnout was under 50%. In Texas it was widely reported that early voting numbers were way down. The question I have is why? Why do potential voters sit these elections out? What will it take for them to see that if they vote, they could get to make a better life for themselves in their states? In Texas especially, we keep hearing about the demographic changes that should flip the state. So far we are not seeing that. Since 2018, Two Million more people have moved here and Beto made a concerted effort to go after them. Are we just going to have to import 10 Million Voting Californians to finally flip this state?
And I just learned yesterday that only 45% of voters turned out here in Texas. WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK IS THE PROBLEM WITH THE OTHER 55% OF THESE VOTERS?????
Democratic Voter Turnout — Same as above. Democrats historically do not vote in Mid Terms. In 2018, Beto lit a fire under the ass of a dead state party, which I had written about several times here. This time around, I actually heard a state pundit say that there were “no exciting races here this time”, and that was why early voting was down. What The Actual Fuck???? How can Democrats just sit out these elections? Even using the Reach app, I still saw people who didn’t vote in the 2018 Mid Terms.
This is what is the most insidious thing about Republicans and their bullshit “government can do no right” bullshit philosophy — because of how they have poisoned the system, far too many people don’t have ANY faith in government, and don’t see the point in voting. And they just don’t give a shit as to how badly they are being fucked over. How can we change this and make them care? And meanwhile, people like me are doing everything we can to get them to vote to make positive changes in our states, and we have our hearts broken time and time again. In 2014, 68% of Texans didn’t bother to vote. That election broke me and I did very little in 2016. (In hindsight I feel guilty about that too, but I just couldn’t).
I have been in the trenches working on campaigns for 30 years, with my first one being Bill Clinton’s 1992 race. I have made thousands of phone calls, written postcards, and block walked many miles. I have worked on more campaigns that have lost than have won. And I am getting tired of my efforts being in vain. After years of making phone calls to other states to GOTV, this time I chose to focus on my own precinct and GOTV efforts there, yet we only got a 48% early voting percentage.
Breaking Through to Republicans — by any logical stretch of the imagination, the failure of the power grid should have doomed Abbott. Even Republicans like to stay warm. Yet they don’t seem fazed by it. Ken Paxton HAS BEEN INDICTED SINCE 2015 and they don’t seem to have a problem with it. Are they all just lost causes? How can we improve our messaging to them? Is it even possible? How the actual fuck could seniors in Florida VOTE FOR FUCKING REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES WHO SAID THEY ARE LOOKING TO CUT SOCIAL SECURITY AND MEDICARE???? WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE??? ARE YOU INCAPABLE OF THINKING BEYOND THE TRIBAL MENTALITY?
Sorry for yelling but I need to vent!
Are certain states just gone? I am heartbroken here in Texas over Beto because we believed that he could win. We had the BEST slate of statewide candidates I can can ever recall seeing here since I have lived here. I could easily see the state party go back to nominating Some Guy placeholders again, and continuing their losing ways. Should we just make Greg Abbott King of Texas now? There are no term limits here — he could be our Governor for the next 20 years! And the majority of people, both the Republican voters and the non-voters, don’t seem to give a shit! I worry that Texas Democrats will slip back into our old loser ways. In 2024, we have a chance to defeat the piece of shit that is Ted Cruz. Do we just not even bother to try here? Ohio seems to be gone now, as does Arkansas and Iowa. Obama won Iowa and Ohio both times, and I am shocked about Ryan’s loss. Alabama and Mississippi will probably stay permanently gone — their citizens must like bad government.
The thing that makes me most sad is the disappointment in the young people who worked on Beto’s campaign. It really is enough to make you say what is the point in voting if things are never going to change? I am feeling that now and I have been in the trenches for decades, as mentioned above. How do we keep going with all of this? What do I tell these 20-somthing kids who I worked on this campaign with to keep them going for future campaigns?
I am a Proud Gen Xer who is sad and disappointed about this. I am even sadder when I saw a tweet that showed that my generation voted at at R+11 range. What the actual fuck??? Many of us were poisoned by Reagan and his bullshit. I had hoped that my generation would have grown out of that bullshit by now.
Believe me — even I, the political junkie, am tempted to say Fuck It, It’s just not worth it anymore.
But then They Will Win, as that is what they want, for us to give up. And I am too fucking stubborn to let them win! Don’t worry — my happy/dumb ass will be back at it in 2 years time, then in 26, 28, etc. And given my history, it will probably be in vain. But I don’t have a choice in the matter. It is who and what I am and what I do. It is an integral part of my being.
I just selfishly hope my efforts can pay off in some wins, someday. And just once in my life, I want to live in a state that goes Blue in the Presidential race. I don’t think that is too much to ask.
And I look forward to a time when an election year rolls around where I say “Cool — let’s get started to make some positive changes” and being excited about working on an election vs. “Fuck — let’s do what we must mitigate losses” and dreading it.
A Facebook business acquaintance, someone who I have to be nice to, posted a message about Texas still thankfully being red. I am seething at his post and the people I know who liked it. I hope that some day in the near future, he won’t be making posts like that. My neighbors, who I like, and who have never put up a political sign, put up their Abbott sign in such a position that I would have to see it when I went out of my garage, and they did this in the last two weeks. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and not everyone will agree with me. That is OK. But I am beyond sick and tired of having to eat shit from Republicans!
What do we do? What do we do as Democrats to improve? They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again. I know that I am asking questions that are not easy to answer or have simple answers. But something has to radically change for our Party.
To be quite honest with you, it is extremely hard to understand how ANYONE votes Republican, given the fact that the choices between Parties and Candidates should be so glaringly obvious!
I am writing this diary to both generate discussion and ideas and to help me straighten things out in my own head to help me to understand. As I have mentioned on this site, Daily Kos is therapy for me and I enjoy reading the intelligent comments of like minded people. I look forward to reading your answers.
And a personal request — if you like this diary, please recommend it so that it can trend. I would like to generate some discussion here!
Have a Great Day Everyone and Thank You for Reading This!