**OFFICIAL** 2018 Midterms Thread Part 3!

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**OFFICIAL** 2018 Midterms Thread Part 2!

I don't want to be disappointed on election night. There are so many great Dem candidates running this time. Even if we take the House, I feel there will be disappointment and after 2016, I can't take any. I want this election to be a strong rebuke of Repugs, Pres Bone Spurs and conservatives.

I see it as all about the Internet.

Hitler would have been decimated by Jews before he got his shit together.

Unfortunate that it took a Trump to mobilize America.

We have to at least take the House back on Tuesday or this country is over.

And no, that is not hyperbole.

Got to r/CaliforniaAction and be a highly informed Voter! They have national voting resources and endorsement too, in addition to the State of California.

HRC had a Dallas event recently? Beto was there.

Yum he’s so tall and handsome.

They need some shirtless pics of Beto to leak just in time for Tuesday.

One day left.

Exactly how I feel. The first guy in the ad — what's his name? Cute daddy.

I was so worried about the kittens — that the gag was going to be her squeezing them too hard.

Weirdly unfunny at 0:54 ("... This one belongs to the...").

I hope results are bad enough for Republicans that Miss Lindz gets the vapours, and takes to her fainting couch. A do-not-disturb sign is placed on her door, and gentleman callers, even her heartthrob Kavanie, must take a raincheck so the poor thang can recover.

the poll statistics are wrong.

Keep working on getting the Democratic Party and their policies of health care for all, elected.

There is a high number of rejecters, and it not clear how this is weighted in the statistical models.

Just voted absentee straight Democratic ticket in the State of Oregon.

[R14] I want a wild blueberry mojito, so bad right now. And you not only saved yourself, but you voted to protect the lives of very vulnerable Americans.

Cheers

King of Nevada politics Jon Ralston predicts Rosen will win the Senate race, Dem Sisolak will win the governorship.

Actually got my partner to vote for the first time since 1996 this year. He was huffy about it and said, "all I did was vote all Dem and vote no to keeping all judges, I'm not spending a lot of time on this." Fine by me, my man. A vote is a vote.

Are you in a swing state/seat, r17?

No chance of Republicans winning where I live, so no matter how rainy it is we'll certainly keep our gay Democratic congressman, JFK Jr.'s college buddy David Cicilline. Good luck to all of you in red or purple areas in maintaining high turnout—hope to see some records broken.

Turnout among 18-29 year olds, compared to 2014 early voting (as of 11/4):

- AZ +186%

- FL +112%

- GA +362%

- MI +155%

- NC +170%

- ND +2475% (!!!)

- NV +409%

- OH +135%

- TN +666%

- TX +447%

- Wi +758%

Source: @targetsmart

[quote]Trump: New Fox Poll shows a “40% Approval Rating by African Americans for President Trump, a record for Republicans.” Thank you, a great honor!

Odd, then, that the Repugs are expending so much effort to keep African Americans from voting.

I know David. I have pictures of him when we met at a gay beach. He was wearing a crimson velour bikini brief that surprisingly looked really good on him and his hairy legs- fuzz on f

Fuzz on fuzz! He’s heavier now but I met him right before he got elected mayor of Providence. Hot hairy Italian back then.

Sorry, meant to post pic but my posts keep getting cut off (sensitive smartphone). He looked like this when I met him.

[quote]TN +666%

I *knew* that Taylor Swift was the Antichrist!

I remember you posting about David Cicilline, R22-24. He looks cute in that picture, cuter than when I've seen him about town lately. He needs to ditch the mafia-lawyer hairdo, but maybe that's what's getting him elected in this burg.

R14, I sent my all-D ballot on Friday, in Oregon.

True - he’s always had that even-trimmed gumbo haircut. It was kind of an endearing mama’s boy look back in our thirties - not so sure now that we’re in our late fifties.

Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity will appear with Trump today at his get-out-the-Republican-vote rally in Missouri.

So fair and balanced!

Claire McCaskill is up by 3 points in the latest NBC News/Marist poll, which was released this morning on the Today Show.

'Trump has hijacked the election': House Republicans in panic mode

Worries deepen that Trump's charged immigration rhetoric will cost the GOP more seats.

House Speaker Paul Ryan got President Donald Trump on the phone Sunday for one final plea on behalf of anxious Republicans: Please, please talk up the booming economy in the final hours before Election Day.

But Trump, unsurprisingly, had another issue on his mind. He boasted to Ryan that his focus on immigration has fired up the base, according to a source familiar with the call.

Not really R18, but we may get a Dem governor again. We're a red state but have had several Democratic governors since the 1980s. The senators will be red forever.

Update on FLORIDA:

“Florida Democrats for the 1st time this election surpassed Republicans in total early ballots cast

Dem: 2.07m (40.6%) GOP: 2.04 (40.1%) Margin: 0.5% (was +GOP 0.6)

Total ballots 5.1m of 14 (so 36% total turnout)”

This is a GREAT sign.

No doubt anyone who was fired up by fear of immigrants has long ago been as fired up as they were going to get; everyone else sees through the fear-mongering and is turned off by it. I'm not sure talking about the economy would be any better for the Republicans; it hasn't crashed, but people aren't doing better on the whole than under Obama.

[quote]Not sure whether to buy some champagne or not.

This is something you can do on Friday, if warranted, when the close races have shaken out.

I swear to Cher if you do it before then I will rain gypsy curses on your home and family.

And, where are the young people? WHERE ARE THE YOUNG PEOPLE????

YES. Any premature talk of victory will JINX us. Act like we're 3 points down and it's February 1942.

R36, the young people are at R20.

on twitter, r36.

New polling from CNN:

CNN POLL CONDUCTED BY SSRS Nov. 1-3 Likely Voters’ Choice for Congress

Democrat 55% Republican 42%

New: CNN POLL CONDUCTED BY SSRS Nov. 1-3

How Trump Is Handling His Job as President

Approve 39% Disapprove 55%

An “attitudinal” shift: A recent Harvard Institute of Politics poll indicated the most dramatic shift in their polling history is young people’s attitudes about whether politics makes a tangible difference in their lives. John Della Volpe, IOP's polling director, said pollsters saw a 15-point increase post-2016.

Per the poll: Forty percent of 18 to 29-year-olds reported they will “definitely vote” in the midterms (54 percent of Democrats, 43 percent of Republicans and 24 percent of independents).

I have quite low expectations for tomorrow's contest(s). It won't surprise me in the least if Republicans all over the country don't pull some dirty tricks, and end up getting away with it. If they do and it's challenged in the SCOTUS I can imagine them letting it stand. I just don't want to get my hopes up only to have them dashed. The disappointment would be far worse if I expect the dems to win the house and they don't.

Playbook: “The general consensus among Republicans is that they will lose the House, and end up in at least a five-seat minority — that would correspond to a 28-seat loss. Senior Republicans tell us that even in a worst-case scenario, they do not expect to lose 40 seats. A prescient prediction or famous last words? Only time will tell. We spoke to several senior Republican lawmakers yesterday, and only one made the case that the GOP will keep the House.”

Some more stats...

I keep having 2016 voting day flashbacks to “No way Hillary loses”

I pray this turns out different

New Marist polls out of Florida have Gillum and Nelson up +4 (both 50% to 46%).

IIRC in 2016 there were warning signs for Democrats in the early voting, e.g. in FL. Are there warning signs here? So far the vast majority of reports (cf. the poll at R45) indicate a pro-Democratic turnout in line with the elections of the last two years.

I wish it were over.

Last midterms coming two years after a new President were 2010, following Obama's 2008 win.

That was the year, you may remember, of the mobs. The teabagging people yelling, screaming, crying like little babies.

Eight years ago, 2010 was the year the Republicans won the majority in the House, where every seat is up for election.

The Senate remained in the hands of the new President's party, with Harry Reid keeping a majority in the Senate.

Don't let people tell you holding on to the Senate is some victory for Cadet Bone Spurs or affirmation of his fear strategy or airplane-hangar rallies.

A lot of the races will be too close to call, just a warning. This is a long haul. I am already a nervous wreck too.

VOTE DEMOCRATIC PARTY DOWN BALLOT, both candidates and public policy.

WE need you, ALL of you.

Is it "were" or "was"?

Once again, if there is a path to recovery, it is black women who will lead the way.

[quote]I keep having 2016 voting day flashbacks to “No way Hillary loses”

Not sure anyone was saying that on voting day itself, thanks to the Comey letter.

And today people are aware of how manipulated the vote is, and aren't as lazy/comfortable as in 2016. Fingers crossed it will make a difference.

[quote] I wish it were over.

Well, in about 36 hours it will be, so you'll get your wish.

Based on all the indicators, I am cautiously optimistic. That even takes into account the massive amount of cheating, voter suppression, and thievery of the Repukes. There's no sure thing until the votes are cast and -- hopefully -- counted. But, despite tRump's airplane hanger harangues, the momentum in critical individual states appears to be inching ever so slightly in the Dems favor. It seems to be breaking at just the right time.

Fingers crossed.

DLers, you have to get out and VOTE, or else we are Fucked. Polls being nothing. You have to vote.

Vote Democratic Party down ballot.

Voted in CA and verify verified online that my vote was counted. Parents in VA swing distract can't vote early, are voting Dem tomorrow.

Gurl we know, you are preaching to the choir r54. No one obsessively following a political thread is apathetic about voting.

WTF??? I'm watching Morning Joe on MSNBC ( I know, I know), and I just saw an anti-Beto O'Rourke ad that claims to be independent and not part of the Cruz campaign. The ad was a hit piece on Beto's arrest years ago for fleeing the scene of a car accident, making him sound like The Fugitive or something.

The weirdest part of the ad is its placement. Why are they running it on MSNBC? Nobody outside of Texas can even vote for either Beto or his opponent, so what is the point of running it in other areas of the country?

Also, how desperate are the Repugs that they are resorting to this sort of tabloid bullshit now?

[R57] Gurl, I am fucking having a meltdown during breakfast. I worked hard to get Dems elected. Fuck! This is it.

[quote]Don't let people tell you holding on to the Senate is some victory for Cadet Bone Spurs or affirmation of his fear strategy or airplane-hangar rallies.

In fact, even if the Republicans hold the Senate (as seems likely) by a couple of seats it's more of a victory for Democrats, since this year was an excellent map for Republicans, with opportunities to pick up seats in red states. As it stands it's likely that the Dems will hold onto most of their seats and possibly pick up a couple.

r36, Relax ( unless you are just being a troll), that is a picture of Souls to the Polls. That's older people (mostly African American) who go to church and then go to vote; how many young people are likely to be a part of that?

[quote]IIRC in 2016 there were warning signs for Democrats in the early voting, e.g. in FL. Are there warning signs here?

Only that a lot of races are polling close, within the margin of error, and there is still a ridiculous number of undecideds in many contests. Example: 9% of likely voters declare themselves undecided in the race between the execrable Dana Rohrbacher and Democrat Harley Rouda in CA-48.

I'm going Trump does something disgusting today.

How can anyone be undecided in this crazy country?

A lot of us did, R58. We just have to sit back and stay calm now, there's not much else we can do.

[quote]How can anyone be undecided in this crazy country?

I'm hoping those are people who are too embarrassed to admit they don't know anything about the election and aren't going to vote rather than people who are too embarrassed to admit they're going to vote R. I think it's more likely the former since Rs are typically happy to proclaim their ignorance.

Details for today's new FLORIDA poll:

NBC/Marist poll

(likely voters)

FL-GOV

Gillum (D) 50%

DeSantis (R) 46%

***

FL-SEN

Nelson (D) 50%

Scott (R) 46%

***

"Both Democratic candidates also enjoy net-positive favorability ratings, while both Republicans are more disliked than liked."

***

"Asked which party they want in control of Congress after November’s elections, 49 percent of likely voters choose Democrats, while 45 percent choose Republicans."

***

Gillum & Nelson both lead with Independents.

***

Trump approval in Florida: 44%

Trump disapproval in Florida: 51%

*** Poll conducted Oct 30-Nov 2

Ugh feels almost like 2016 anxiety-wise.

UGH.

Valium all tomorrow.

MISSOURI

SENATE

NBC/Marist

Claire McCaskill (D) 50

Josh Hawley (R) 47

***

"McCaskill holds a 20-point advantage among likely independent voters (56 percent to 36 percent), as well as leads among women (55 percent to 42 percent), non-white voters (78 percent to 20 percent) and those under 45 (58 percent to 39 percent)."

***

"In September’s NBC/Marist poll of the state, McCaskill and Hawley were tied at 47 percent each."

***

Gosh I hate Hawley so much. Phony sociopath.

I saw a CNN poll that had Democrats leading Republicans in a generic ballot 55% to 42% (13 points!) and had Orange Menace's approval rating down at 39%!

I also saw a poll ( can't remember which one now } that gave Gillum a 7 point lead over DeSantis in Florida, and Nelson a 7 point lead over Scott!

I know these polls are quite literally all over the place at this point, but damn, the latest momentum seems to be moving in the Democrats direction. YES!!!!!

only if people actually vote.

COOK POLITICAL Ratings Changes:

#FL25: Diaz-Balart (R) - Likely R to Lean R

#GA06: Handel (R) - Lean R to Toss Up

#MI06: Upton (R) - Likely R to Lean R

#PA10: Perry (R) - Lean R to Toss Up

#WA08: OPEN (R) - Toss Up to Lean D

R73, that Gillum poll you’re referring to is Quinniapac, I believe. Poll Troll may be able to find it.

Yes, you can find the Quinnipiac poll with the 7-point lead for Nelson (& Gillum) here in the poll list at 538:

(Although 538 has adjusted the lead to 6 points).

Direct link to full Quinnipiac poll details for Florida with 7-point leads for Nelson & Gillum:

Thank you Poll Troll!

538 has now increased Bill Nelson's chances of winning tomorrow from 66% to 70%.

Gillum is at 76%.

538 has increased Democratic chances of winning the House to 87%:

Thanks, Poll Troll.

I only care that the Dems win the House. That will change everything. But it would be great if Dems could also pick up Georgia and Florida statehouses and get ride of Scott Walker in the same year.

R83, Evers is favored to beat Walker tomorrow, but it's still close.

It's about 60-40 odds right now.

60% chance of Evers becoming Wisconsin Governor, but it's close enough that Walker could hold on

Oh, Ana, just switch already.

Well, who is this? Why don't we know about this? Are there no DL members in Colorado?

Shouldn't we be supporting and celebrating?

Colorado's Jared Polis could make history as first openly gay governor

Not once during his public remarks to a small group of ardent Democrats in this picturesque mountain town did Jared Polis talk about his personal life.

He talked about his accomplishments in Washington and his goals for Colorado. He talked about the Continental Divide Recreation, Wilderness, and Camp Hale Legacy Act and he talked about the Helicopter Fuel System Safety Act. He talked about how lowering the cost of early childhood education would benefit the state's neediest families and how if his opponent is elected, he will serve as a "yes-man" for the president. But Jared Polis didn’t talk about his personal life.

In a year in which candidates across the country are sharing tales of their health ailments and job layoffs, racial discrimination and childcare struggles, Polis -- who could make history next week as the first openly gay man to win a U.S. gubernatorial election -- is instead deflecting attention away from his potential historical accomplishment and towards the message of inclusivity that has been embraced by his fellow Democrats in the most diverse election cycle in modern memory.

"I really think that we are at our best as a nation, as a society, when our elected officials are fully representative of the people they're elected to work for," Polis told ABC News. "That means we should have our communities of color represented, women represented, the LGBTQ community represented. And the more diversity we have in elected leadership, responsible positions, I think the better result we'll have."

Though he's chosen not to make his sexual orientation a talking point on the campaign trail, Polis' shot at history comes as part of this year's "rainbow wave," an influx of LGBTQ candidates across the country who are running for office.

In Vermont, Democrat Christine Hallquist is the first transgender woman to be a major party's gubernatorial candidate. Gov. Kate Brown, up for re-election in Oregon, became the first openly bisexual person to serve as a state's governor upon her ascension to the position in 2015. ABC News has identified an additional 22 candidates who identify as members of the LGBTQ community running as the major party nominee in House and Senate races nationwide.

To Polis however, already the first openly gay man to be out when first elected to the House of Representatives, such progress is not unusual, at least in his home state.

"Colorado is a groundbreaking state," said Polis. "We've had LGBT speakers in our state assembly, Senate minority leaders, commissioners."

The Utah mayor who died in Afghanistan had one final wish. He wanted Americans to vote

(CNN)The death of Brent Taylor -- the North Ogden, Utah, mayor and soldier who was killed Saturday in Afghanistan -- reverberated far beyond his small city in northern Utah.

People around the country are mourning the loss of the National Guardsman who was finishing up his latest tour of duty in the war-torn country when he was killed in a so-called "insider" attack. But despite the grief, many are finding hope in the final message Taylor posted to Facebook, just days before he died.

"As the USA gets ready to vote in our own election (Tuesday), I hope everyone back home exercises their precious right to vote," Taylor wrote in the post. "And that whether the Republicans or the Democrats win, that we all remember that we have far more as Americans that unites us than divides us. 'United we stand, divided we fall.' God Bless America."

I have a question or two on some polling info - maybe 2018 Poll Troll or others could give some insight?

1.) The early voting numbers, breakdown between Dems and Repubs - I didn’t think these ballots are counted or at the very least, results aren’t made public, before Election Day? Or, are the numbers being given based on voter self identifying as a Dem or Repub early voter?

2.) Do any of the many reputable polling organizations take into account people possibly not being truthful in their polling answers? I remember this was a story that was explored after W won his 2nd term. The gist being people didn’t want to admit they planned to vote for W, but the pollsters maintained these answers didn’t really mess with the ultimate numbers they had. Now, I can imagine FAR more people not wanting others to know they plan on voting R post-2016, so not to be too “Mary!” about it, but could this be a problem? I’m thinking particularly about some of the well heeled suburban districts where we’re counting on the affluent, college educated women who voted tRump in 2016, to go Dem tomorrow. Issue or non-issue?

TIA!

MSNBC's Hugh Hewitt and Lindsey Graham have a special, mutually supportive, relationship. Look at the 2-4 tweets and retweets.

R88 That's what we have to be careful of. Due to the anti-Trump slant of the media, many people who voted for Trump will not be honest with pollsters about who they are actually voting for.

R88, the states know whether you're a registered Democrat or Republican or unaffiliated. That's all that they are reporting when they say that a certain percentage of people who have voted early are Democratic or Republican. That is not the same thing as reporting which way you voted, something you correctly note will not be done until tomorrow night.

With respect to your second question, this is an age-old problem and nobody has a good solution for it. As far as I know, the polling agencies do not take these things into consideration, as that would be applying a value judgment to the numbers, e.g., "We assume that 10% of these people are lying to us, so we adjust the numbers accordingly." That just doesn't work. If there is such a problem, where there are people who don't want to admit who they're voting for, we won't know that until we match the final results against the polls.

Fucking morons from California saying they don't care about voting -- a row of 15 kids sitting in a row outside Jacob Soboroff asks "Is anyone voting?" Not one. Fucking hell idiots.

At 1:44. Holy shit.

At 7:38. Fucking moron.

"I swear to Cher" is now my go to threat.

Thank you R90 and R91!

I appreciate the clarification on the reporting of early voting breakdown. To be honest, I’m kind of conflicted about them releasing any information about who voted. Sure, if the numbers are lopsided it can help to get out the vote on Election Day, but the opposite can also be true - if your side is reported wildly up in early voting, a confidence can descend making those who haven’t voted less inclined to “bother”. Personally, I like the idea of a blackout on all election data being released by the govt agencies administering the vote until polls close on Election Day.

I understand what you mean R91 regarding polling and voters not being truthful, and I agree - there really is no way to quantify that “unknown” into the polling data/numbers. I do agree with R90 especially in the post-Trump world - no one wants to admit supporting him/Repubs to strangers/public. This alone has me concerned about those women we need in the suburbs instead “going home” on Election Day and voting straight R ticket.

Just please, everyone, VOTE tomorrow! And nag the hell out of your friends and families to do likewise! Voting is your right, your privilege, and your civic responsibility!

Trump invokes more fear and sets the stage for disputing election results:

Law Enforcement has been strongly notified to watch closely for any ILLEGAL VOTING which may take place in Tuesday’s Election (or Early Voting). Anyone caught will be subject to the Maximum Criminal Penalties allowed by law. Thank you!

Republican Bill Kristol replies:

Good news: This is likely fake news. Is there any actual "notification" by the federal government to states to "watch closely" for illegal voting, let alone an attempt by the feds to specify penalties?

Bad news: The U.S. president is engaged in voter suppression, pure and simple.

R93, lol California.

Sometimes they do live in a bubble. It might as well be another country.

I hope this is a measurable trend tomorrow:

My post on the midterm. I’ve been a registered Republican my whole life but just voted a straight Dem ticket for the first time ever,including for a candidate I thought inferior to his GOP opponent. Trump is huge threat to US liberalism & constitutionalism.

-- Robert E. Kelly, Professor of Political Science

A dead guy could win.

Goddamn self-absorbed millenials just take everything for granted.

Don't believe me? Watch the last 10 minutes of this, especially the clueless little queen at 42:50.

R101 yeah that was infuriating. What an asshole.

[quote]I swear to Cher if you do it before then I will rain gypsy curses on your home and family.

Sometimes I love DL queens!

Don’t let this lady get away with this:

Embattled GOP Senate Candidate Is Lying About Her Health Care Record — Again

Martha McSally is still telling people she voted to protect people with pre-existing conditions

Wasn't it R102? Wait till the stock market crashes (which it will), let alone the real estate market, and watch the poor baby blame everyone but himself for taking everything in his life for granted because he never voted in his life.

I'm not impressed by the increased turnout percentage among young voters in Florida. Yes, it increased by 112%, but we need them to do more. In fact, IMO, those percentages are misleading for all the states. Let's say you have 100,000 eligible voters in that demographic. And, in 2014, 4,000 of them turned out. In 2016, 5,000 turned out. Now, we have 20,000 turn out. Wow. That's a huge increase from the other two elections. But it is only 20% of those eligible to vote. That's what I'm trying to say. I'd like to know how many eligible voters exist in that pool and of that, what percentage of the eligible voters have turned out in early voting or are expected to turn out tomorrow. Can anyone tell me that?

Jacob Soboroff has great hair.

When Dems has been declared winning the majority in the House I’ll turn to Fox just to see their faces. I’ll probably watch Fox from the moment it is obvious Dems will win big. Just to see their reactions.

R106, that information takes a lot of work to tease out and it will depend at least partially on info that we won't have until tomorrow night. All we can do is point you to the Elections Project Twitter feed and website, as they have the most comprehensive early voting database available.

^Dont bother. Fox will be talking about Hillary’s emails.

Or they'll be touting how Trump "saved" the Senate for Republicans, assuming they do.

Or they'll claim that if Republicans continue to hold the Senate, which is likely, that it will be because there was no "blue wave," ignoring the fact that it was just a year ago that Republicans thought they could get to a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate and now they're going to be grateful to just hang on.

For Florida you have to trust the polling data that independents are splitting towards the Dems. It is going to be close, I expect whoever wins will do so by 1-2 points. It is not a race that I expect to get called early.

If Republicans keep the Senate, it’ll be razor thin majority.

I just don't realistically think the Dems can win in ND, TX or TN. I can easily see a path to a 50/50 split, which is still GOP control, that would be considered a great night for the Dems if they manage to do it. Increasing their hold with this mal?! I'd be damn happy.

But to 51? I get why 538 has it at a 15% chance.

Fox News' favorite prognosticator weighs in with his predictions for tomorrow. With numbers like these, he won't be invited to appear there in the next 48 hours:

D +34 in House, R +1 in Senate, D +10(!) in governorships

^^That's Larry Sabato, by the way.

I thought it was Antonio Sabato, Jr., soon to be seated as the Congressman from California's 26th!

If Stacey Abrams wins, she could be a president or vice presidential nominee for the Dems in ... (worst case, where Trump wins in 2020), 2024!

Kind of doubt she's up for running in 2020 of course.

CA-48 (Rohrabacher)!!!

Sorry - it's 46% Dem,

45% GOP,

%9 undecided.

+/- 4.7%

Vote, Vote, Vote!

You have to ask yourself: Do you want a Congress full of Trump puppets?

Charles Blow

Allow me to make a few requests of you in advance of Tuesday’s elections.

First, dispense with all of the distractions and the deceit.

Donald Trump is openly trying to weaponize racism, to inflame passions and stoke fear. He wants America to focus on a caravan of refugees almost 700 miles away rather than to see clearly the corruption and cravenness right in front of our faces.

Tune out, for the moment, the torrent of lies coming from Trump.

Instead, focus on your principles.

Focus on the numbness you felt on Election Day 2016, the feeling of horror and disbelief that Trump would actually assume the presidency, the way you stumbled though the days that followed, a pained, hollowed-out shell of yourself.

Remember the reason that you showed up, pussy hat-adorned, for the Women’s March, or the March for Our Lives following the horrific high school shooting in Parkland, Fla.

Remember that feeling of honor and solidarity you felt when you saw those who took a knee on a football field or stood up at Standing Rock.

Remember Trump’s pathetically insufficient response to the suffering of brown American citizens in Puerto Rico and his outrageously hyperbolic response to suffering brown Central American refugees still in Mexico.

Remember that Nazis, white supremacists, white nationalists and all manner of racists seem to be quite pleased with Trump’s ascension.

At the white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va., the former grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan David Duke boasted:

“We are determined to take our country back.”

He continued:

“We are going to fulfill the promises of Donald Trump. That’s what we believe in. That’s why we voted for Donald Trump, because he said he’s going to take our country back.”

Remember how you felt when Trump said that there were “very fine people” on both sides in Charlottesville.

Remember how it felt back when, even if you disagreed with the president, sometimes vehemently, you still didn’t think he was a demagogue and demi-fascist.

Remember when the press — and the truth itself — wasn’t under constant assault by a president who is a liar of a quality and scale that we have never seen before.

Remember how dizzying it is to keep up with how many people have been forced to resign from this administration in shame and how many of the people connected to the Trump campaign have been indicted or pleaded guilty to some form of crime.

Remember how you felt when you heard Trump bragging on tape that he enjoyed assaulting women, when multiple women stepped forward who claimed to have been sexually assaulted by Trump and when conservatives, including the so-called “religious right,” dismissed it all.

Remember the disgust you felt at seeing people held at airports due to Trump’s Muslim ban and seeing children ripped from their parents and locked in cages due to Trump’s family separation policy at the border.

Remember when Trump stood before law enforcement officers and encouraged more police brutality (they clapped), and stood before the Boy Scouts and talked about killing Obamacare (they chanted “USA! USA!”).

...

... Remember that the Russians attacked our election and Trump not only hosted a joint press conference with Vladimir Putin, where he drew some moral equivalencies between our country and theirs, but he has utterly failed to full-throatedly acknowledge the attack or take sufficient steps to prevent the next one.

Remember how you feel every time you see a Trump rally and recoil as his hyped-up base falls further into his thrall, excited and entertained by his animus and depravity.

And now remember that through it all, Republicans in Congress have averted their gaze, silently or openly acquiescing, or even cheering.

Republicans bore witness just like the rest of us to Trump’s hatred, racism, division, corruption and mendacity, but instead of rejecting him, they embraced him. They became his flunkies and minions, his accomplices and his defenders. There is now no daylight separating the Republicans in Congress from the man who occupies the presidency.

So, you have to ask yourself: Do you want a Congress full of Trump puppets?

Do you want a Congress that refuses to hold Trump accountable, who would halfheartedly investigate connections between the Trump campaign and Russia and who would halfheartedly investigate a Trump nominee to the Supreme Court?

Do you want a Congress that will be a rubber stamp for Trump’s ill-conceived policies and will help him remake the American judiciary in ways that could take generations to undo?

Do you want a Congress that has continuously voted to do precisely what Trump wants to do: destroy the Affordable Care Act?

Is this the country you thought it was or could be, or are Trump and Republicans in Congress making a mockery of your America?

I say, enough is enough!

Someone has to protect this country, our institutions and our traditions. We have to stand up for honesty, principles, equality and civility.

The Constitution offers avenues for political change in this country, but the paramount one is at the ballot. Seize your opportunity on Tuesday. Vote, vote, vote!

I'll be voting after work tomorrow. Reading ballot info today but I already know how I'm voting but need clarification of a couple of local issues.

I feel anxiety about it. Am hopeful Democrats will achieve more than anticipated but afraid if we don't the unhinged orange asshole will become even more destructive. This re-sanctioning Iran is just sending us backwards. I can't believe there is so much hate and meanness existing in only one creepy creature, backed up by more creepy creatures of course.

I can't pull up Democratic Underground right now. It was hacked in the 2016 election and down for many days. I'm a little worried as I do use that as a news aggregator though I'm not a poster there.

North Dakota

What has irked me... and, for quite awhile now! Like... can we come up with something new? Much that is being said now is EXACTLY what the unwashed said when during President Obama

-"He's destroying the country"-- Obama/Trump

-"Take our country back"--This one has really gotten on my nerves. I'm SICK of it!

There are so many others. I'm sure you follow my meaning.

r127, what a fucking asshole you are. FF

I see cable news channels like CNN and MSNBC started their election coverage early this weekend. Saturday and Sunday nights? I wasn't expecting that, but I enjoyed watching it. I think I'll be heavily tuned into MSNBC election night. They have really good coverage broken down into great detail. I like that.

I'll be watching CNN to. But, MSNBC has everyone else beat in my personal opinion.

If you're curious as to what the election ads have been like and what people are seeing in various cities and states, Bloomberg has analyzed that for you, reviewing more than three million ads. For the majority of the country, it's health care.

All of those concern trolls who have been wringing their hands and loudly whining that Democrats are running on "nothing but Trump!" or "Russia! Russia! Russia!" are kindly invited to jump into the nearest convenient grease fire.

Democrats have raised more than three times the amount in small-dollar donations than Republicans. And have been using that money to widen the number of races that Democrats are competing in.

[quote]Her windfall was part of a carefully coordinated strategy behind the scenes by Democrats to increase the number of competitive House races nationally by attracting small-dollar donations to underdog candidates who otherwise would have been given little chance of success.

[quote]Democratic candidates raised more money than Republicans in the 2018 midterms, particularly in small sums under $200. Strategists across the political spectrum point to their breakneck fundraising pace as a sign that the party could be well positioned to take control of the House this year.

...

[quote]“What Democrats’ money allowed them to do is expand the battlefield beyond the handful of most vulnerable Republican seats,” said David Wasserman, House editor of the nonpartisan Cook Report, a political handicapping website.

[quote]As of October, Democratic candidates had outraised their Republican opponents in 53 of the 73 most competitive congressional races, including 20 districts that Trump won by double digits in 2016, according to a Washington Post analysis. Twenty-two contests became competitive after Democrats began heavily fundraising.

La Senatrice today:

If @BarackObama's jobs numbers were anywhere close to what we’re talking about with President @realDonaldTrump......the media would stop the Earth from rotating to make sure everybody heard about it!

Kyle Griffin in response:

Jobs created during last 21 months of the Obama admin and the first 21 months of the Trump admin:

Obama: 4,477,000

Trump: 4,054,000

They really do operate in a completely different world. Republicans seem to be absolutely convinced that the economy that Obama handed off was virtually the same as the economy that George W. Bush handed to Obama. The country has been on a steady recovery path since shortly after Obama took office but if you look at Republican news sources, twitter accounts, etc., you would never think that.

Interesting: the latest racist ad from Trump, their "Willy Horton" equivalent, has now been pulled by Facebook, NBC, CNN, and ... Fox News.

[quote][R127], what a fucking asshole you are. FF

I have that troll on block. I suggest you block him too.

Apparently, everyone did, as the comment no longer appears in my feed. We do have some of the dumbest trolls on the Internet.

Miss Lindsey needs to take it up with Cheeto. Trump isn't even talking about the economy, too obsessed with poor brown people a thousand miles away.

Paul Ryan is begging Trump to keep the focus on the economy. He and other Republican prognosticators are concerned that Trump's overreach is harming Republican chances.

[quote]Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-WI) appealed to President Trump in a phone call on Sunday, begging the President to focus his rhetoric a bit more on the economy and a bit less on immigration, Politico reported.

[quote]But Trump swatted away his pleas, reassuring the House leader — who’s retiring — that his laser focus on immigration is the best way to ignite their base, a source familiar with the call told Politico.

[quote]Trump: New Fox Poll shows a “40% Approval Rating by African Americans for President Trump, a record for Republicans.” Thank you, a great honor!

The only people they polled were Candace Owens, Diamond & Silk, Sheriff Clarke, and six other African Americans.

Well, it's a little late now. Trump has already run around the country spewing hate and bigotry against the "caravans." Having Cheetolini pull away from his hateful rhetoric at this juncture seems pointless.

R132 La Senatrice is irrelevant closet case and he should literally stay in the closet and be quiet.

Nah, R139. This was the Rasmussen tracking poll, not Fox as Trump claimed. It's highly volatile and very subject to small changes having a large impact. There was one iteration that had a slightly skewed sample, resulting in that number. It's already back down to a more normal level, i believe.

There was a discussion in 2016 of a similar polling sample issue, where they found the addition of a single black Trump supporter could skew the results by a measurable amount, something like 5 to 10%. It's bullshit.

I'll be bouncing between CNN and MSNBC. I prefer John King and that big map he plays with drilling down into the precincts, etc. along with Wolf Blitzer. But I really prefer the commentary on MSNBC. Some of the people they have on CNN I just cannot abide. I love Anderson, and Gloria Borger and Jeffrey Toobin are very good. So is Dana Bash. But when I see Symone Sanders rolling her eyes and holding forth, or the histrionics of Chris Cilizza, I get nauseated.

CNN's right wing panelists give me anxiety so I'll stick with MSNBC.

depends on who looks the hotter, king or kornicki,

The ultra-right wing Washington Examiner is apparently trying to motivate the Republican base:

Democrats closing gap in key Senate races as late polls defy forecasts

While polling analysts still forecast the Senate to remain in GOP control, some surveys indicate nail-biting contests in key states in the final days before Nov. 6. In the Senate battle in recent weeks, Republicans have been confident of winning North Dakota but concede that Nevada and Arizona could go to the Democrats, making the chamber evenly balanced on 50 seats each but still in GOP control because of the tie-breaking vote of Vice President Mike Pence.

That, however, was before new polls in Tennessee - the "firewall" state for Republicans - dead level. If Democrats cling on in Florida, Missouri and Indiana, where their incumbents have faced tough fights and an energized Republican base loyal to President Trump, then it could all come down to the Volunteer State.

R39 writes,

New polling from CNN:

[quote]CNN POLL CONDUCTED BY SSRS Nov. 1-3 Likely Voters’ Choice for Congress | Democrat 55% Republican 42%

That is best told for what it means for U.S. House.

The 2018 Democrats need to win the U.S. Popular Vote, for U.S. House, by +5.5 (according to “Five Thirty Eight”). For a whole-number estimate, the 2018 Democrats’ target margin is +6.

If the 2018 Democrats win the U.S. Popular Vote, for U.S. House, I would estimate the following:

(+1.08, following –1.08, from Ds’ 2016 outcome ) + 13 (poll margin) = 14.08 (national 2016-to-2018 shift)

3.64 (historical net gains in seats, with each percentage point national shifted from House-flipping midterm elections) x 14.08 (2016-to-2018 national shift) = a net gain of +51 U.S. House seats

If the 2018 Democrats are hitting that level, for U.S. House, they will also flip the U.S. Senate. A new majority for U.S. Governors ranks second, from those three levels, in their likelihood for majority pickups for the 2018 Democrats.

Thanks for explaining, R147. You broke it down well

Re: Claire McCaskill.

That woman has already won two elections she was supposed to lose...

2006, yes, but she rode that blue wave. She was dead until 2012 until she was gifted Todd "Legitimate rape" Akin, her handpicked candidate. This year will be much tougher terrain. MO has long been a bellwether state but it's moved right considerably since 2006 and even 2012.

Rick Wilson’s recent conversation with a Republican member of the House who about to lose tomorrow.

Kansas

Jared Polis never gets talked about much here r86. I guess because he is not attractive. But yes he is poised to make gay history.

How soon they forget.

McCreevy was not openly gay when he was elected r154. There is a crucial difference with coming out after the fact (and then having to resign in disgrace...)

Great Michael Bloomberg ad tonight during NBC nightly news.

Has he been ordained yet?

I don't really find it great that Bloomberg is going to be running for president r156. Ugh.

This primary is going to be such a mess.

Here's a potential gift from an overseas poster following all this with much interest and high hopes

Here's what we have to deal with in Kansas:

Final certified registered voters:

Democrat: 463,114 Libertarian: 17,618 Unaffiliated: 543,403 Republican: 817,713

I’m a true-blue flaming liberal, but I can see why Michael Bloomberg might—MIGHT—theoretically be considered a good candidate. He’s what Trump claimed he was, a very successful businessman. Not only that, but he actually gained government experience running NY. Even though he’s liberal on social issues, I would never vote for him, I don’t necessarily approve of how he ran NY. He should have stayed Republican.

He was a Democrat who switched parties because it gave him a better shot of winning. At least until it became a liability.

R159, you going to rattle the poor poster who can’t get the over all eligible voter stats for each state. But now I see what he means. It’s true, it would be more helpful for all the media reports about early voting to include overall eligible voters for each stat.

You can find over numbers nationally on wiki and also for each state to compare. It’s a pain but the info is out there.

Also they don’t seem to account for population growth when they exclude total eligible voters. So some of the increase in voter turnout has to be because of growth in some areas.

Getting into the weeds here. We’ll know the outcome soon enough.

With Bloomberg running, the Democrat 2020 primary is going to be such a circus! I hope they learned from watching the Repubs in 2016, and won’t cannibalise each other. But, I worry they still will.

Even with his $20 billion fortune, his government experience as mayor, I can’t see him getting past the fact that (a.) he’s an obscenely rich white man; (b.) he has a long and documented history (via court cases and settlements and some of his own writings) of exhibiting horrible and inappropriate behavior towards women - in the #metoo age, that won’t fly; (c) he has an ego the size of a small planet; (d) as mayor, he didn’t always play by the rules, he didn’t really believe in transparency, and created agencies and/or legislation to get around existing laws when it suited him; and, (e) he’ll be SEVENTY-FREAKING-EIGHT years old in 2020!!! No ifs, ands, or buts — he, like Biden and Sanders and others, is just too old!!

The way I feel right now.

He has the stop and frisk problem too. The only way he could win is an independent.

He wouldn’t survive a dem primary.

Perhaps this is a good topic for the inevitable 2020 thread.

Bloomberg's supposed strengths don't amount to anything that will win him an election. So what if he's a real successful businessman? Trump voters like to parrot his claims that he's a financial genius, but they know he's really not and it's not why they voted for him; it won't turn anyone from Trump to Bloomberg. So what if he's a "moderate"? No one cares where on the scale *per se* a candidate stands; they care about specific policies and attitudes. Look where "moderation" got Jon Huntsman.

In any case the goal shouldn't be to appeal to Trump voters and tear them away. He lost the popular vote by millions and won the EC by a hair. Trump supporters are a minority anyway. The goal should be to compete in as many places as possible and get out the vote, as Democrats seem to be doing right now—tomorrow should show how to fine-tune the process for 2020.

My god is Michael Moore transitioning?

We've been wondering about that for a while.

Diana Taylor, Bloombergs companion, would make a nice First Lady. Imagine having class back in the White House.

So is everyone confident that our enemies are not going to hack the vote? Do the Democrats have this covered? Oh God, I hope so. I am so nervous. Things seem good but I never thought Hillary would lose. I think the worst thing about the Trump craziness is that it makes you doubt what is up and what is down. It is like always living on the edge of a nervous breakdown with this creep.

But Annie Logan killed her, R171!

R165 I agree it's going to be a circus and eventual bloodbath as they fight for the nomination. You will have the up and comers (Booker, Harris, etc), the outsiders (Bloomberg, Avenatti, etc) and the establishment (Biden, Sanders, and probably Hillary). Avenatti is the true wildcard if he adopts Trump's playbook and goes on the offensive and trolls his Democrat rivals endlessly.

My wife just begged me to post on the Datalounge that Rachel Maddow’s make-up tonight is awful. Please if you know anyone on the show please have them pick a different color foundation tomorrow.

Do we have an official DL drink of the evening for tomorrow? Election Night drinkie-poos?

R176 Scotch, straight up, with a drop or two of water. Lots...

Yes they really went totally overboard on Rachel’s makeup.

They need to tone that down for the big night tomorrow

I thought she looked good tonight. I often take objection to her fake eye lashes, mascara, etc

Her eyes looked great but the contouring was a bit much.

No way a Corporatist like Bloomberg is gonna get the Democrat nomination. Avenatti is a loose cannon. Biden is too fucking old.

Speaking of Rachel, her last segment just made me completely nervous all over again! Did you see it? It basically said that because of gerrymandering in the Repugs favor, Dems have to win the overall popular vote by at least 12% to 14% tomorrow if they want to win back the House! Only one poll (the CNN poll) has them at 13%, the rest are points lower than that.

Thanks Rachel, like I didn't have enough to be fucking worried about already.

If that's what she said, it's bullshit. Nate Silver already crunched the numbers on this and, depending on the districts involved, I believe that the Democrats could take over with as little as a 5.5% advantage.

In theory, I think we could actually take back the Senate. But not with states run by Republican crooks. They will do literally anything legal or illegal to make sure that doesn't happen.

Quoting 538:

[quote]But Democrats would have to win the popular vote by somewhere on the order of 5 to 7 percentage points, according to the various versions of our model, to actually win the majority of House seats.

Great news in Florida....MSNBC is already calling it for Gillum

Someone should tell the Deadline site that there's a difference between 6 percentage points and 0.6 percentage points.

[quote]And, of course, MSNBC had Democrat Andrew Gillum leading the GOP’s Ron DeSantis by 6 percentage points with 99% of the ballots counted.

[quote]I only care that the Dems win the House. That will change everything.

It wouldn't be a cure-all, and it wouldn't be quick. Evil, awful, demon-folk would just alter tactics.

No matter what, we have a long road ahead and a lot of hard work.

Set your mind for it now, and help others to prepare. We can't afford any more years of people giving up because a whiskey spring and singing bluebirds don't appear before the next election.

Seriously, I know it's shallow, but can Stacey Abrams do anything about that horrid GAP in her teeth?

It looks terrible.

[quote]Great news in Florida....MSNBC is already calling it for Gillum

The fix is in?

If the Democrats win the House and the stock market goes into freefall, I’m screwed.

[quote]Jacob Soboroff has great hair.

Sometimes I forget I'm on Datalounge, and do appreciate the return occasionally to the important things.

How about Terry McAuliffe for the 2020 Dem nomination?

I’m manning a trade show booth all day tomorrow. What do you think is my best source to occasionally glance at tomorrow for updates? I need to set notifications since I can’t hang out on my phone in front of customers.

R194, the meaningful results won't start coming until after the polls close on the East Coast. Unless your trade show runs late, you should be fine.

CNN R194

What r195 said. we aren't going to know anything til tommorow night.

[quote]I can easily see a path to a 50/50 split, which is still GOP control

Not if a Republican were to die

Like Rachel said, tomorrow will tell us how evil the fruits of gerrymandering are.

R191, in case you haven't noticed, the stock market has been tanking for the last month so don't act like the election is going to be an issue causing that.

First polls close at 6 PM EST on the East Coast.

I want a blue tsunami!

[quote]This was the Rasmussen tracking poll, not Fox as Trump claimed.

Yes, this is a very good point.

As opposed to Rasmussen which has a very definite Republican bias, the FOX poll itself is considered a decent pollster in the polling industry.

The Fox poll is conducted by 2 polling organizations that work together -- a Democratic pollster & a Republican pollster.

Krugman. Scary and correct.

FOX polls are conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R).

538 podcast was good today. Listen to the end. Nate shares his gut sense of how it'll go. It's encouraging.

I'm so fucking nervous! Should I watch the returns or not?

R207, watch them, but give yourself unlimited comfort food. That's my plan.

In Texas you have to register to vote by mail. Several people who registered before the deadline are not showing as active until after the election. What the fuck.

[quote]First polls close at 6 PM EST on the East Coast.

And that includes Kentucky 6, I said it before here but if Dems win that one, you can relax. It is going to be a very good night.

Them losing doesn't mean they won't take the House, but them winning there means they will definitely take it.

R208 And lots of hard liquor

What a lurid story at R100.

Though Kentucky and Indiana polls close at a sensible 6pm, since they split across time zones, the media doesn’t report their returns until 7pm.

6pm is a tad early for working folks when you factor in the line.

It’s a wonder they let them vote at all.

Do militias just wonder around Georgia? Not a good image for tourism.

[quote]6pm is a tad early for working folks when you factor in the line.

It's ridiculously early especially for a state that doesn't offer early voting. It's a tactic they use to discourage working folks from voting.

538 has increased Democratic chances of winning the House to 87.7%:

(Updated Nov. 6, 2018, at 12:54 AM)

Intention to vote surveys are meaningless, especially if you don't vote.

VOTE DEMOCRATIC Down Ballot, both for candidates and public policy!

VOTE!

Please god let these republicans lose colossally. And then may the ground open up and all their evil souls be reclaimed by their dark lord.

The Senate model has also ticked up to almost 20% (1 in 5 chance) in favor of Dems.

If Dems win 40+ seats or somewhere in that region, I find it inconceivable that vulnerable red state Dems will be defeated. Yes, the red state Dems are on rough terrain but if we're looking at a huge wave some of that will naturally transfer over to the Senate races too.

This is the one true election thread and I won’t stand for imposter threads. I won’t.

and governor races, too, r221.

Dark lord is who: Mercer or Kochs?

Is there a dark force left for Mitch McConnell to sell his dark soul too?

Bump for legitimate thread.

We didn’t come this far to be bumped by a lowly, duplicate thread.

Long live the ***Official*** election thread.

Please let the republicans be liquidated.

R211, yes, Kentucky 6 is important to watch.

It's currently rated as a Toss Up, with the incumbent Republican having a very narrow edge:

Gillum is up anywhere from 4-7 points in the five (!) polls that were released today. That's a pretty comfortable lead in Florida.

"The Republican Party is the most dangerous organization in Human History."

-Noam Chomsky

VOTE ALL REPUBLICANS OUT of OFFICE. Yes, even if you are a registered republican, vote against these elected republicans.

VOTE DEMOCRATIC!

That Brennan Center report on gerrymandering on Rachel was scary. Dems need to win by 10 to 11 points. Ugh.

[quote] Please let the republicans be liquidated.

So, you liquidated her. Very resourceful.

R228, he was up a point yesterday and trailing with Hispanics, blacks and new and early registrations.

Senate is gone.

[quote] 538 podcast was good today. Listen to the end. Nate shares his gut sense of how it'll go. It's encouraging.

Nate is an idiot.

The Senate was always going to be especially tough. As long as we don’t lose significant ground in the Senate, it will be a real testament to the Dems.

[quote]Dems need to win by 10 to 11 points. Ugh.

That won't be the case after the next census. Dems are on track to pick up major states today that are gerrymandered to hell after the last census, such as Michigan, Florida, Ohio, Iowa, Illinois, New Mexico and maybe Wisconsin and Kansas. All the new Dem governors will all be able to veto gerrymanders.

Page 2 (page 7 of the PDF). Need 23 seats. 10–11 points with gerrymandering. Versus 4 points without.

so Hannity and Pirro were on stage with Trump at his rally tonight. They have the nerve to call themselves "news" hosts

Imagine the outrage if any of the CNN or MSNBC hosts had appeared on stage at an Obama rally. Imagine Rachel Maddow doing this

Ordered tons of comfort food from AmazonFresh. Vegan mac and cheese, vegan mini corn dogs, Twizzlers, etc.

Duncan Hunter is likely to win. How stupid is his district? Indicted for sixty felonies. Absurd.

[quote]Gillum is up anywhere from 4-7 points in the five (!) polls that were released today. That's a pretty comfortable lead in Florida.

Yes, and Nelson appears to be solidifying a decent lead over Scott.

what is that district like? I know there are some CA repub pockets but that's crazy that Hunter is favored now

I'd give up sex for a year — more even — for even just the House. Fuck.

[quote]what is that district like?

It's an R+11 district. It would need a blue tsunami to take him out today.

It’s not over in the senate. All these new voters are throwing off the numbers. The senate is going to come down to every single vote. It couldn’t still go either way.

Don’t be a pessimistic patty. Go drive some people to the polls.

Duncan Hunter. From today.

IOt's also because voters in CA 50 are used to voting for the Hunter name.

Hunter's father was the Congressman there for multiple terms.

It also shows the power of partisanship and tribalism in some voters. Even being indicted on criminal charges is not necessarily enough to change long-standing voting patterns in particular districts.

I'm progressive and will vote a straight Democratic ticket and yet I live in a very Red state. I'm the exception to the rule among the residents here. However, after thinking this over and watching all the signs and data I have got a very, very BAD feeling about the final outcome of the election Tuesday. When I hear there are massive, historically unprecedented early voter turnouts in all the Red states, I get a flashback to November, 2016. We all thought Hillary was going to win...then look what happened. You can't take this for granted. These deplorable Trump ass licking mongoloids will come out in droves to vote for their God Emperor's minions (as the alt right calls him) and sadly I have a very sinking feeling that the Republicans just may yet again sweep the majority of the elections. I HOPE NOT! But I feel that if they can't win honestly, then they will win by cheating. I have tried my best to be optimistic and I was, up until a few days ago but this very massive early voter turnout is an extremely ominous sign. I fear the worst may well happen. If the Repubs have a sweep of most of the elections then say goodbye to democracy. Trump will appoint himself President For Life (which he has already said he wants to do) and the Republicans will help him do it. All of this being said...I just hope and pray I am dead wrong!! But that hope is very slim. I'm being pragmatic. Realistic. Past is Prologue.

I'm glad I don't have suicidal tendencies (yet). If the worst happens I will give up on this country. The David and Goliath fight just doesn't work any more. :(

The Dems need an advantage of around 6 points to win the house. If they rack that up to 11 points, then they'll probably take the Senate too. That's what Rachel was getting at, or should have been saying.

If the Dems don't take the house today I'm not leaving my house on Wednesday.

Felon stokes fear, wins.

Ugh, family members in Georgia, Trumpers, were crowing at how many of the church groups were organized and ready to make it a Red Storm.

[quote]The Dems need an advantage of around 6 points to win the house. If they rack that up to 11 points, then they'll probably take the Senate too. That's what Rachel was getting at, or should have been saying.

I don't know about that, R249. A D+6 electorate would portend to a difficult night for Dems overall IMO. They really need to be in high single digits/double digits to make significant gains in the House. A D+6 electorate could go either way in the House and would probably wipe out several red state Dems.

Los Angeles CHEAT SHEET. If you find yourself making decisions last minute:

I am also nervous that the repubs will cheat to win (in addition to the voter suppression and kicking people off the voter rolls). They've shown themselves to be absolute scum so nothing evil they do shocks me.

I would not be surprised if magically all the close races in red states go the repub way just by "coincidence" wink wink

there are also still plenty of liberal dumbasses who can't be fucked to vote

[quote]However, after thinking this over and watching all the signs and data I have got a very, very BAD feeling about the final outcome of the election Tuesday.

And what are we supposed to do about your BAD FEELING, dear?

If it's d+6, they'll likely take the house, even though it won't be pretty and it will be by the skin of their teeth. D+8 it's what the average of polls are, and that should give them a 30 something seat gain.

We will see tomorrow night.

FWIW, I live in a very red part of a red state, yet I see little enthusiasm for the GOP. Trump car stickers disappeared a while ago.

There are trolls posting here tonight. It’s putting me in a great mood. Desperation means they’re scared.

[quote]I am also nervous that the repubs will cheat to win (in addition to the voter suppression and kicking people off the voter rolls). They've shown themselves to be absolute scum so nothing evil they do shocks me.

[quote]I would not be surprised if magically all the close races in red states go the repub way just by "coincidence" wink wink

[quote]there are also still plenty of liberal dumbasses who can't be fucked to vote

Tell me, is your favorite character in Alien played by Veronica Cartwright ?

I'm getting very nervous, bitches. Election Day is today! Progressive groups have been working up to this moment for almost 2 years now. Hard to believe it's finally here. I've been binging on cable news all day. Election Day is my Christmas.

R255 You aren't supposed to do anything about it, dear. Why be so bitchy? I expressed my viewpoint, no need to attack.

You didn't express your viewpoint, dear R260, you vomited your anxiety over this thread. How helpful do you think that is?

R252, as Nate Silver pointed out this week, the conventional wisdom was that Democrats needed to win the generic ballot by about 7 points to overcome gerrymandering and win a Majority in the House.

However, as Silver points out, several other factors favoring the Democrats means that the Dems don't necessarily need to win the generic ballot by as much this year in order to win the House:

[quote]People have been using a 7-point popular vote win as a benchmark for D majority, but that's *probably* out of date, and a little too high. Doesn't account for PA redistricting, GOP retirements, Democratic $$, and other ground-level factors that have helped Democrats.

R260 just remember in 2016 when some posters here told us not to be concerned and that the Dems had the election won handily. The ones telling you not to be concerned can go fuck off. Until the results come in, there's no reason not to be nervous

I do not feel good at all...our country is awash in racism . I have no idea what will happen.

Final polling data by NYT/Siena for Upshot indicates that the Democrats closed strongly in the battlegrounds:

R261 Oh..now I see where you're coming from and I see your point. Yes, I admit I was expressing my anxiety and I see that is not helpful. I shouldn't have allowed my anxiety about this to run away with me. It got the better of me. My fault.

There is no sense in worrying about anything. You have to be productive. Anxiety, like guilt, is an unproductive emotion. Vote. Tell all your left leaning friends to vote. Drive them there if you need to.

All you’re doing when you go on about your bad feeling is riling up other people needlessly.

Hope Latinos actually vote. I don't mean vote Dem — I mean just vote.

I'm growing skeptical of whether they'll ever get engaged in civic affairs. Something like resentment is growing in me.

Like, are they Americans or not?

Yeah yeah "They're totally American — they're apathetic and don't vote, like most Americans."

Bullshit.

What’s the Latino voting rate compared to Americans overall?

R269, here. It's the lowest. See the page not just the preview image. Very interesting.

R101's video was awful. That Latino queen was fucking horrid. Didn't he go to school?

If this turns out badly, we need a discussion about immigration policy. We Dems.

Fuck off, r272.

No matter how it goes, we need a discussion about an emigration policy--for deplorable, Trump Party members.

My boyfriend was saying the same thing earlier, R272. If the Democrats had said something like, all new immigrants must pass an English literacy test, or be able to speak English... a large percentage of the “look out, it’s the caravan!” lunatics could agree to voting for Democrats.

I think if the Latino/Asian/Black turnout doesn’t increase tomorrow (though how could it not?), Democratic hopefuls need to stop focusing so much on them. They definitely need to give up on the Trans nonsense. Stop pandering to .5% of the population. Stop pandering to those who don’t vote for you anyway.

[quote]If the Democrats had said something like, all new immigrants must pass an English literacy test, or be able to speak English... [bold]a large percentage of the “look out, it’s the caravan!” lunatics could agree to voting for Democrats. [/bold]

Words fail me.

Democrats should just copy Canada's immigration syatem. Points-based merit. If you emphasize that it's the same as Canada's, some of the reluctance will fade.

What do you disagree with?

Democrats have been falsely portrayed as wanting open borders and increased crime. If they showed even the slightest inclination to be “tough” (like insisting on English literacy), that’s one less talking point the Rethugs would have.

This is controversial?

Or too stupid?

Remember what kind of voters we’re trying to reach.

Sorry, that was for R275 ^^^^^.

R274 so you think Democrats should focus more on white people, when white people mostly vote for repubs no matter what? That makes no sense. The vast majority of the remaining Silent Gen, the majority of Baby Boomers, a bit more than half of Gen X go for repubs. White millennials are much more liberal but don't turn out to vote as much. If Trump being a bigot, cheater and liar didn't turn off white Silent Gen, Baby Boomers and Gen X what do you think will? There are plenty of white people who don't vote as well.

The black vote made the difference in the Alabama senate race last year fyi

I wish Hillary were livestreaming a viewing party for the election results. Would love to see her clap and cheer when the House is called for the Democrats.

R277, the Republican base will never listen to anything reasonable. Ever again. They worship the guy who thinks our military should shoot at refugees. They HATE anything that has to do with Democrats or Obama or Hillary. These are the same people that need Obamacare, but vote for those who want to repeal it.

They are beyond help.

538 has again increased Democratic chances of winning the House -- now up to 88%:

(Updated Nov. 6, 2018, at 1:56 AM)

R281 Same can be said about the democrats. Everyone who votes for the Republicans are deplorables. You and everyone in America are part of the problem.

[quote][R281] Same can be said about the democrats. Everyone who votes for the Republicans are deplorables. You and everyone in America are part of the problem.

Democrats do not support bigotry, racism, xenophobia, destruction of environment, repeal of Social Security, Obamacare, Medicare, voting rights... you name it. So, no, the same cannot be said about Democrats who actually want progress. Or are you trying to say that Democrats should learn to support Nazis?

Shame on you for even coming here to bullshit us the 'both sides are the same' nonsense.

R245: "All these new voters are throwing off the numbers."

That was funny.

R274 nailed it.

R284 You really don't see the problem? You just label an entire group of voters as racists, bigots and nazis. People like you cannot stand someone having an opinion different than yours. America has to be the most divided place in the world.

R285, there's been over a 2000% increase in under 30 voting in North Dakota. I hope the Repugs find that hilarious tomorrow night.

Oh, and little troll tip...don't make your troll replies sequential. When you show up and post a bunch of times in a row, you become quite obvious. Stupid Boris.

[quote][R284] You really don't see the problem? You just label an entire group of voters as racists, bigots and nazis. People like you cannot stand someone having an opinion different than yours. America has to be the most divided place in the world.

But they are all of those things. Openly. And so is the man in the White House they would follow off a cliff. What is your problem with me pointing out something that America sees in the news every day? Do you think that Democrats and liberals love living in a country this divided?

[R284] You just label an entire group of voters as racists, bigots and nazis.

Members of which political party in the US engage in racism, bigotry and xenophobia? If you say Democrats or both parties, please provide links to support your claim.

[quote]People like you cannot stand someone having an opinion different than yours.

Being a racist is not about having an opinion. You should know better than that.

[quote]You just label an entire group of voters as racists, bigots and nazis

You have post after post denigrating an entire group of people, based on their ethnic origin and not on their ideas. I don't know what else to call it.

Dehumanizing a whole class of people as "deplorables" is the essence of bigotry. I mean, fuck them for giving us Trump, but still...

When you support putting babies in cages just because they're brown, I think the "deplorable" title is earned. There really isn't much humanity left in people who cheer rapists and think shooting asylum seekers at the border is ok.

[quote]When you support putting babies in cages just because they're brown, I think the "deplorable" title is earned.

No, if someone specifically supports an act like that they deserve to be described in harsher and less generic terminology. The truth is, anyone from the working and lower classes who votes Republican is dismissed and dehumanized with the moniker "deplorable" and that in itself is the essence of bigotry.

R290 Of course being racist is not about having an opinion. But people voting for Republicans are not necessarily bigots, racists or nazis. That's the problem with identity politics these days. It's either us or them. People who don't vote the same as you must be bad. It also happens to other countries but you Americans take it to the extremes.

[quote]if someone specifically supports an act like that they deserve to be described in harsher and less generic terminology.

Voting for people who order these acts, or for people who support them, deserves very little, but deplorable is an apt and precise description.

Look it up.

[quote]Anyway, can we get back to the midterms? This is a distraction, isn't it?

Yes, let's.

GOP is bracing for a massacre in the midwest.

[quote]The fact "deplorable" is mostly used for lower/working class voters is unsurprising, in that sense.

Not a fact, sorry.

no what you're not going to do is compare an accurate term "deplorable" to racial and homophobic slurs. Complete false equivalence. Deplorable FITS those people. Deal with it, repub defender. Anyone who still supports Trump should be shamed

[quote]Deplorable FITS those people.

And people who use racist and homophobic terms would argue that they "fit" those people. In every case it's a means to dehumanize a whole group of people. As is the right-wing tendency to use "liberals" as a catch-all derogatory term. It's all bigotry. Instead of debating ideas or issues, they just dismiss all opponents as one mass.

[quote]repub defender

QED.

it's not bigotry to call out bigots you moron. The deplorables are bigots and deserve to be labeled as such. Calling out a group with an insulting name because of their backwards, bigoted beliefs and behavior is in no way comparable to using misogynistic, racist and homophobic slurs. They are not the same. Stop with your false equivalences.

When they go low we go high, right R297 R301? If Deplorables ( and. or you ) don't like the label they shouldn't live up to it so precisely. It doesn't just fit for the poor, working classes you are so concerned about, but also the well to do ignorant, as seen often in their spit- flecked video rants. Deplorable is an egalitarian term entirely apt for the subject. I'm very suspicious of you milquetoasts having the vapors over it upsetting those caring , economically anxious republicans, could it be the phony milquetoasts are just trying to tie 'liberals' up in knots of their own political correctness? how deplorable!

Calling a bigot deplorable is OK. Calling an entire town or group of people in, say, a rodeo, a bunch of deplorables, is not.

So, if one or both of the houses go to the Democrats, what happens between now and early January when they are sworn in? Does the Dotard and the rest of his cabal have time to institute horrible policy until then?

And Deplorables define that meaning R306 , they are very comfortable with the Trump agenda with is bigotry incarnate, and those who hold their nose and vote for it for reasons supposedly unconnected to the bigotry are just as deplorable, and you who want these people treated with sympathy and understanding are at least deplorable adjacent.

[quote] Does the Dotard and the rest of his cabal have time to institute horrible policy until then?

McConnell will become even more determined to ram Judges through. If you think that he is on steroids with that now.... just wait.

They will try to pass stuff that will lock in the tax cuts.

It's disgusting for you to equate the struggles of blacks and gays who had and have to fight tooth and nail for each and every right with the brattish,bigoted ignorance of Trump voters, truly deplorable of you R310

Stop talking to it. Block it. If does not give a rat's ass what you type.

Troll 5356 just has their panties in a wad and will continue to try to win this pendantic arguement because it is the only winning his side will be doing today. Truth.

[quote] So, if one or both of the houses go to the Democrats, what happens between now and early January when they are sworn in? Does the Dotard and the rest of his cabal have time to institute horrible policy until then?

Sadly, yes. In any other period in our history, the party that lost would be chastened by their drubbing at the hands of their opponents via the voting public. They would have tried to pass only measures that everyone could agree on.

Not so with this crowd. A loss of one or both houses of Congress will only embolden them to do as much damage as they can inflict between now and January 3, 2019.

I just got back from voting. My nerves are shot. I may need a xanax or two to get me through the next few days.

It's not about people "having different opinions." It's about the reality we are living with right now: That reality is that the Republican Party has been hijacked by extremists whose beliefs are antithetical to democratic government, and our Constitution. Period. If you were to characterize them as Anti-American you would be right. Now either you get that and you're just trolling, because you agree with it, or you need to take off your blinders. and admit the Republican Party as we once knew it , no longer exists. Republicans have always been the minority party. But their base has shrunk, and they have isolated themselves.

In order to win elections they have to lie, cheat and steal. They have to insist their supporters deny reality and cower in fear. They divide us from one another and create distrust among us. We see one another as evil. Immigrants, Muslims, Blacks, Gays, even women. They attack and demonize their opponents smearing them with false accusations and offer nothing. They have no healthcare plan to offer. They have no jobs program or infrastructure program to offer. They have deliberately eroded institutional trust so that their supporters no longer believe the mainstream media, they no longer trust law enforcement, they distrust government programs, and have now been trained to vote against their own self interests reflexively.

Example: Right now, this year, Russia has replaced the United States as the main supplier of soybeans to China. The American Farmers will have the best soybean crop ever, but sales are down 94% this year, since Trump took office and enacted his trade policies. And they voted for Trump. That is the best example I can give you off the top of my head. The goal is to empower the oligarchy, and to hold on to power and enrich themselves. It's pretty simple. Starve government out of existence and privatize everything. No accountability. The whole notion of the government deriving its power from the consent of the governed has effectively ended with the ascendance of this new Republican Party.

R316 here. I will also add that the United States has now become part of a world wide movement, a tilt to the Extreme Right, engineered in large part by Putin and his oligarchs and one of their goals is to destroy the EU, get rid of NATO, and weaken the United States economically and politically. They have exploited the refugee crisis all over the word as a means to this end. In fact they helped create it in the Middle East through their client states Syria and Iran. Those two countries have been exporting war and disruption for at least three decades. As Middle Eastern and African refugees have poured into the other European nations the Right as gained strength. Trump has created a similar crisis here using "immigrants."

[quote]It's disgusting for you to equate the struggles of blacks and gays who had and have to fight tooth and nail for each and every right with the brattish, bigoted ignorance of Trump voters

It's a sacrament for many.

Polls are open in more than half of America!

The thing I hate most about election day is the waiting. Even during the day. Working a campaign, getting out the vote, and then in the afternoon around 1-2 PM until about 5 PM there's a lull and the we get busy again. Waiting makes me nuts. With a campaign there a re these deadlines and there's urgency and you're going full out, heart racing, getting things done, and then, suddenly...it stops. And the morning after is the worst. Doesn't matter if you win or lose. Of course losing is worse. But suddenly it's over. No one is around. It is quiet. And you crash. The lack of sleep, the stress, the poor diet, the drinking over caffeinated, too much alcohol, etc. And yet, when the next campaign or the next election cycle comes around, there you are. At the starting gate, waiting for the pistol to go off and the race begins! I love it.

[quote]Like Rachel said, tomorrow will tell us how evil the fruits of gerrymandering are.

Thankfully the courts have thrown out Pennsylvania's gerrymandered to hell districts. That is going to make a big difference tonight, Dems are expected to pick up several seats there.

If the Congressional map was drawn on a completely bipartisan basis, tonight would be stress free, the Dems would be 99.9% certain to sweep by big margins. The only reason it is tougher is because our system is undemocratic.

What number in your voting group/table/district/what have you were you? I was # 22 at 7:09. That’s busier than usual in my deep blue state.

Then I got to the train station and my beloved Democratic State Senator was there shaking hands and the Latino challenger to the Republican incumbent State Congresswoman was also there representing. (She isn’t terrible - her two big issues are accommodations for the disabled and legalizing marijuana and in a normal year I might have voted for her, but NOT THIS YEAR.) Nary a R candidate was in sight so I am taking this all as a good sign and feeling optimistic.

“If the Democrats had said something like, all new immigrants must pass an English literacy test, or be able to speak English... a large percentage of the “look out, it’s the caravan!” lunatics could agree to voting for Democrats.”

Of course, requiring English literacy would also ensure that the “look out, it’s the caravan!” crowd wouldn’t be able to vote.

THIS is who we’re dealing with...

A Huffington Post writer went to a Trump rally and asked his supporters if they care whether he lies all the time. One woman’s response: "I don’t care if he sprouts a third dick up there.”

R323 The whole immigration argument was a trap for the Dems and they decided to talk about Healthcare because the internal polling and focus groups said it would be effective. But I have often criticized the Democratic strategists for not being agile enough to respond in real time to events. The Republicans a re much better at rapid response. When the demonstrators were raising hell about Kavanaugh they were labeled a mob. Then they start the whole "extremists, mobs" line in their advertising. I actually heard older white women in the supermarket talking about "so-and-so is "too extreme." Trump got traction from his immigrants caravan. The Democrats should have responded. They should have said, "I agree with the President. No one wants open borders. But the way the President is handling this is wrong. He is making things worse!" I think portraying him as reckless and inept is a winner, but WTF do I know.

If you want to do a deep dive into the Florida data, I'd recommend this blog post.

I applaud the Democratic candidates for staying on message and not playing Trump's games.

I went at about 6:45, was #30 at my table, and there were lines for both the voting booths and the ballot counters. With the exception of the statewide offices, everyone is basically unopposed. I’m shocked at the turnout.

Voted at 6:30 this morning in suburban Cleveland. I’d say there were about 50 people in line, maybe thirty of them being women. This was a new polling place for me, having moved this year, but the poll worker I spoke to said this many people this early was very unusual for them.

It is pouring rain here in ATL. The east is going to have bad weather all day.

My nieces just messaged me to say they’ve voted - in Macomb County, Michigan! My work is done.

Grey and wet in Providence, but not raining when I voted (at the crack of 7). There was a sizeable line when I was leaving, which is typical. No way the Democrats are going to lose here at any level.

[quote]It is pouring rain here in ATL. The east is going to have bad weather all day.

That's NOT an excuse!

VOTE!!!!

This is the one true Election Day thread.

Do the people in the other thread not respect the word “official”?

It’s written right at the top.

Some nerve.

Deplorables melt in the rain. It’s just science.

This thread stands for all that is good and true. May it be blessed with great fortune.

The last line he says to Cruz is freaking classic.

I don’t want to hear a single person complain about rain on Tuesday. No excuses. VOTE!!

"I come as one but I stand as ten thousand."

"When you choose not to vote you are dishonoring your family. You are disrespecting and disregarding their legacy."

VOTE!!!!

VOTE LIKE YOUR RIGHTS DEPEND ON IT!

The idiocy knows no bounds.

Trump warns in Missouri that "if Democrats gain power on Tuesday, one of their very first projects will be a socialist takeover of health care... The Democrat plan would obliterate Obamacare."

I early voted!!!!

OT, but nice furry chest on the made-up guy in R338 at 2:40.

[quote] Deplorables melt in the rain. It’s just science.

Well, yeah.

It's nice to see how Desperate Trump is r341. He sees the writing on the wall.

Just joining the party, early voted in Minnesota, pretty decent lines. Thanks for these threads, I’ll be here throughout the day! 🤞🏼🔵

45 minutes here in Atlanta. Like it does any good - Brian Kemp isn’t going to count my vote anyway but what you gonna do?

Official thread bump.

Prediction - The big story of the night will be women. Women will come out in droves today. And it won’t be pretty for Republicans.

VOTE!

"When you choose not to vote you are dishonoring your family. You are disrespecting and disregarding their legacy."

Vote is in! I'm so glad I voted before work and not after. Waited an hour in a small(er) Michigan precinct. A lot of women and African American voters. Marijuana will be legal by the end of the day. I'm fine with that but I dread smelling the shit EVERYWHERE.

Partner and I got up early and walked 12 blocks to our polling place because parking is a bitch. We did our civic duty AND did something healthful.

r351 - I live in Massachusetts. We voted to legalize MJ in 2016. Still waiting for the retail shops to open.

[quote]Smell ME!

Not until you send me a sample via United States Mail.

Rain rain rain.

Florida voters, please end greyhound racing!

(R353), yeah, I expect a lot of slow movement before there are drive-thrus and recreational use shops. There are, however, a ton of those medical marijuana dispensaries all over the place.

Voted in NY. The guy in front of me was in the booth for about 10 minutes, no idea why it was so confusing or maybe he was deciding then and there.

People that go in without going over the ballot beforehand need a spanking. Just a mild one though because, well, they're voting...

[quote]My nieces just messaged me to say they’ve voted - in Macomb County, Michigan!

[quote]Prediction - The big story of the night will be women. Women will come out in droves today.

Yes! Yes! YES!!!!!

[quote]Marijuana will be legal by the end of the day. I'm fine with that but I dread smelling the shit EVERYWHERE.

Me too. But I'll happily deal with it if we also pass the other two ballot proposals -- independent redistricting and voter's rights.

[quote]Rain rain rain.

For Democrats freaking out about (or Republicans cheering) rain: @blfraga and @eitanhersh find high rains only reduce turnout in uncompetitive elections. In competitive elections, voters are more determined to vote, rain or shine.

R361 pot’s legal where I live and I live in Dispensary Central but you can’t “smell it everywhere “. Public consumption is illegal where I live.

[quote] Public consumption is illegal where I live.

And it is here in DC. But on summer nights in particular you can smell that horrid, rank, awful stench everywhere. I don't care if people want to get high, but I really hate to smell that shit.

Weed should have been legal all along. It should have never been arbitrarily criminalized.

That being said, people shouldn’t have to smell it everywhere. No smoking in apartments. There should be designated areas of no smoke.

I wish I could vote for that, R356. Please do the right thing Florida. we had no ballot amendments.

“If the Democrats had said something like, all new immigrants must pass an English literacy test, or be able to speak English... a large percentage of the “look out, it’s the caravan!” lunatics could agree to voting for Democrats.”

As if the deplorables could pass an English literacy test!

Make America solvent again!

MSNBC's Matt Bradley, reporting from Iowa, is cute.

Some nice election day news, the Gallup poll released today has Dems up by 11(!) points on the generic ballot.

r316, Excellent post!

So THAT’s what’s these tarrifs have really been about.

I knew it was designed to hurt Americans but it wasn’t clear to me who gains.

Now I get it.

Did he lose a parent or a sibling at a young age?

so...what are the bets on the first flip race called for good guys tonight that would signal it's ok to start drinking? I know IN and KY close first, but when votes are counted and a call is made.

[quote]Did he lose a parent or a sibling at a young age?

Have you seen his parents?

[quote]what are the bets on the first flip race called for good guys tonight that would signal it's ok to start drinking?

You haven't started drinking yet today?

Was talking about r369. He looks so grief stricken.

IM already drunk. I woke up like “good morning booze. “

Going to take a short nappy-poo. Hold down the thread while I’m gone.

Democrat’s odds keep falling in the 538 forecast, I don’t understand!?

The NPR Latino USA host is, Maria Hinojosa, is on MSNBC saying how "Everyone is speaking ABOUT LaTinos (hard T). No one is speaking TO LatTnos."

Kind of sick of this. From every group - Millennials, etc. WTF do they want?

I suspect one of the earliest"flips" will be in Virginia’s 10th Congressional District. Expect Jennifer Wexton to take out the despicable Barbara "Trumpstock." Wexton has led Comstock for a while now and Obama and Kaine were there campaigning yesterday.

I live in a state where pot is not yet legal. I have friends who smoke it pretty openly though; on the street, in their porches. But more than a few of them say they’ll stop smoking when it’s made legal and switch to edibles.

It's at 87.8 r580, it's been trending up for a few days

Republicans are attacking Jewish candidates across the U.S. with an age-old caricature: Fistfuls of cash, WaPo reports.

"I will say I have not seen images like this in 21st-century America before."

I voted! It was 40 minutes, door to door. I’ve never seen a line before at my Boston polling station, in 25 years of voting there. Especially odd and exciting, considering that there’s practically no competitive race or ballot question this year.

When I move here, 30 years ago, my neighborhood was at least 30% Hispanics and Black, with an influx of gay guys gentrifying the neighborhood. Today, there wasn’t a person of color in the line of maybe 50 people. My gaydar is a little rusty, but I only saw one or two guys that pinged. It’s mostly populated by young professionals now, with babies and nannies. I miss the old neighborhood.

It’s a nice warm day here, though overcast.

It is rainy on the East Coast but it is actually pretty warm so there is at least that. If it was 45 and rainy that would really suck. I believe the rain should dissipate toward evening.

R380 could not be a more obvious concern troll. Get out there and vote for the Democrats—sweep the Republicans out until they get back to honoring the consent of the governed!

The White House has announced that Trump... err... excuse me, the President, "has cleared his schedule" (LOL! These people...) so that he can monitor the voting activity and continue on making "get out the vote" calls.

[quote]so that he can monitor the voting activity

Which no doubts involves snoring and drooling with a QuarterPounder dripping on his chest.

Anyone else watch the early morning news shows while getting ready today? Across the board, they were all unanimous that Dems will gain the House (by what number of seats was the only difference), Repubs will keep the Senate (again, number of seats in question), and Dems stand to gain up to 10 governorships. So all pretty positive 🤞🏻

But there was this one guy - bald, BDF, possibly British, sounded like he had an accent - who while making it clear he agreed 100% with what had been said and discussed, reminded all that they (including himself) had all said much the same in 2016 re: Hillary v Trump. Went on to say even tho the odds are smaller now then in 2016, there still remains a chance Repubs could hold things (he specifically mentioned KY6 and the eastern Indiana districts as early tells of which way things may go), and if they do, everyone -reporters, pollsters, pundits, etc.- have to step back and figure out what they’re not getting w/r/t the American electorate. My inner political geek really enjoyed the discussion that ensued. He also joked about how since Trump pulled the ads the Repubs wanted and replaced with what he wanted, if they hold he’ll be even more insufferable-claiming he saved the election for them.

I do feel a bit better today - I think it will be close, but I’m optimistic the Dems will squeak out a majority in the House. I did find the bald guy’s points interesting and if it came to pass, I’d agree with him, but the odds are long enough, so I’m not going to let this possible “what if” dampen my optimism today.

Now everyone just make sure you get out and vote today!!

Very little rain in Florida. A thin line of rain in western North Carolina

Trump is addicted to cable news, he just wants to watch TV all day.

He might want to switch over to the Food Network today.

Well yes r391, let's say the Republicans gain seats in the House. That isn't within the margin of error of polls like the result was in 2016, that means that polling companies have utterly failed to capture the American electorate and are failed enterprises.

But the dangerous thing is Dems gaining say 20 seats but not control of the House, that is within the margin of error of polls.

I know some people are concerned that this could disappoint us like 2016 all over again, but I for one was actually pretty nervous about it and afraid Hillary would lose because of the electoral college, which unfortunately came to pass. Yet I feel pretty positive about the "blue wave" today. I'll be completely shocked if we don't take the House.

The odds are better today than the last time I checked, R580, which was Monday I think. Senate is about the same and House is a little higher, but still 7 out of 8 chance. Are you confused or trolling?

R389 Donnie Dotard needs to keep the phone line free and clear for Putie!

I was reasonably sure HRC would win in 2016 but very nervous after the Comey letter, and I'd been getting nervous for months off an on with Brexit and Marine Le Pen's relatively decent returns. There's no way after 2016 I'll ever take a result for granted again.

Probably should have said that in 2000 too, in hindsight.

We shall be terrorized by tweets today;

Donald J. Trump Verified account @realDonaldTrump

"There is a rumor, put out by the Democrats, that Josh Hawley of Missouri left the Arena last night early. It is Fake News. He met me at the plane when I arrived, spoke at the great Rally, & stayed to the very end. In fact, I said goodbye to him and left before he did. Deception!"

"Congressman Peter King of New York is a hardworking gem. Loves his Country and his State. Get out and VOTE for Peter!"

Ok, I promise, last time for this. If you are a Coachella Valley voter.... Rancho Mirage, Indian Wells, Indio, La Quinta, Bermuda Dunes..... please vote Democrat Raul Ruiz and not fall for the slick ads from Trump supporter, Sheila Carter aka Kimberlein Brown. Thank you.

DAILY NEWS:

As historic election begins, scattered problems spread at city voting sites

WaPo's Greg Miller:

Numerous national security officials I’ve talked to in recent days said they were going to polls today with one purpose - to counter Trump. Current and former. Worked for Republicans and identified as Rs. To them, Never Trump now a ballot wide mandate.

Report: Voters turned away at Detroit polling site due to missing voting machines

Polling place in Atlanta moved at the last minute

Issues reported at some polling places in Phoenix

There is some chaos going on at polling places, where all voting machines are down. But I can’t remember which city. Saw on twitter.

There are 75 competitive House races and 70 are held by Republicans. So lots of possible pick ups.

I don’t like the Silver prediction model. He makes people think the odds of a Dem winning a competitive district is 80 percent. That’s crap as most individual races are fairly close. I know that’s not it means but it makes people see it that way. Trump v Clinton was always very, very close.

I'm not watching any results today. I'll watch movies instead. I don't want to know, until tomorrow. I remember 2016 election night... don't want to go through that again.

Devin Nunes' district is changing polling places on people at the last minute. The GOP are desperate to stop the hemorrhage of Republican seats in California. The GOP is going to be reduced to single digits in California. They currently hold 14 seats of the 53 we give to the House of Representatives.

[Quote] He makes people think the odds of a Dem winning a competitive district is 80 percent.

Those people are pretty stupid then.

[quote]Hope Latinos actually vote. I don't mean vote Dem — I mean just vote.

Hu ???

But they do participate, Latinos are always misrepresented in the statistics because they can be white, black and Asian. Exit polls and statistics are never accurate when counting Hispanics.

Latinos are more effective in turning states blue than African Americans. When the Latino population explodes in a state, that state becomes purple and later blue.

The 538 forecast is officially closed.

I really used to follow 538.

I understand the way his forecasts work, but since 11/16 I just can't read him anymore.

Experts sitting in with Stephanie Ruhle on MSNBC this morning said that no matter what happens keep voting. They were talking about voter suppression and fraud and hacking and they said the best way to deal with it is to turn out in overwhelming numbers and vote. Do not let them convince you that it won't matter. So fuck Brian Kemp and fuck the strategy of trying to discourage voters. KEEP VOTING.

[quote]When the demonstrators were raising hell about Kavanaugh they were labeled a mob. Then they start the whole "extremists, mobs" line in their advertising. I actually heard older white women in the supermarket talking about "so-and-so is "too extreme." Trump got traction from his immigrants caravan. The Democrats should have responded. They should have said, "I agree with the President. No one wants open borders. But the way the President is handling this is wrong. He is making things worse!" I think portraying him as reckless and inept is a winner, but WTF do I know.

Apparently, not much, since all of the kerfuffle left us precisely where we were before it all began. The so-called Kavanaugh "bounce" lasted just a week or two. The same with the caravan. The needle moved not at all and where we are now is where we were before the Kavanaugh hearing, before the immigrant caravan, and before the last-ditch effort to appeal to the bigots.

HA! Maybe this already existed but I was trying to find additional info about R405's post. So, I entered "atlanta polling locations" in the Google search bar. I was surprised that at the very top Google has a box of where anyone can enter their address and it will find the nearest voting locations;

Where to vote

2018 election

Enter the complete street address of where you're registered to find your voting location and hours

Google will use your address only to find your voting locations.

This Republican woman in Oklahoma voted Straight Democratic Party this year.

Yeah Trump focusing on the migrant caravan has not helped the GOP at all according to the the polls, we will see how true that is tonight.

It still astounds me he wanted to talk about poor immigrants a thousand miles away rather than the economy which actually looks nice.

It was astounding to many Republicans, as well, with a story that Paul Ryan begged him to stop doing that and to start talking up the economy. Trump refused to listen.

VOTE!

"When you choose not to vote you are dishonoring your family. You are disrespecting and disregarding their legacy."

Thanks, R326. reading that post helped put the early voting numbers in Florida into better perspective and makes me feel a bit better about Gillum's and Nelson's chances there.

Florida was one state, along with Arizona, where the early voting wasn't quite as favorable to Democrats as were most of the other states.

[quote]R281 Same can be said about the democrats. Everyone who votes for the Republicans are deplorables. You and everyone in America are part of the problem.

[quote]R284 You really don't see the problem? You just label an entire group of voters as racists, bigots and nazis. People like you cannot stand someone having an opinion different than yours. America has to be the most divided place in the world.

[quote]R290 Of course being racist is not about having an opinion. But people voting for Republicans are not necessarily bigots, racists or nazis. That's the problem with identity politics these days. It's either us or them. People who don't vote the same as you must be bad. It also happens to other countries but you Americans take it to the extremes.

What is your agenda here, R283, R287, etc...? To say that the people who support a racist president are not racist themselves, in spite of the country experiencing the opposite happening? It's in the news every day.

At the same time, you have been making a thinly veiled attempt at labeling Democrats as bigots. When asked to show some links in support of your claim, you never responded.

R405 The twitter page is gone. I don't know if you are reporting a hoax, or if you are a troll promoting a hoax. I live in ATL and I voted at the library on Ponce for early voting and it was just fine. i doubt it is closed. I'm working from home, waiting on a conference call or I'd go out and check to verify your information.

There will likely be a lot of "fog of war" issues raised today, R424, some legitimate, some not; some malicious, some not. It's always the case for Election Day.

Advice to everyone: double-check before you post and before you re-tweet.

R380, where are you seeing that? it's still 7/8 for the House.

What does Allan Lichtman say? He predicted trump's win in 2016.

Trump loves to feed his baying hounds and let loose the dogs of war. "The caravan!" does that; "the economy" does not.

Dirty tricks from the GOP all over the places - lack of machines leads to closing polling places, moving polling places, etc. Jesus.

So why did the Republicans go with their racist "Willie Horton" ad equivalent? An ad so racist that even Fox News won't run it? One word: Trump.

[quote]President Donald Trump was unhappy with the final midterm advertisement his campaign produced with a glowing message about the economy and instead pushed aides to adopt a hardline anti-immigration message as the final argument before midterms, CNN reported.

Bloomberg is a big fat no for me. I would never vote for someone who put stop and frisk into law. He definitely won't get the black vote. He should just give up now, I know for a fact that there's groups already putting together hit pieces against him specifically about stop and frisk. Using footage of young black males and latino males being unfairly targeted beaten and maimed all because of Michael Bloomberg.

Not only that, but some of those incidents have put people in the hospital and even on disability benefits. And of course prominent black voices are prepared to speak against him should he actually try running for the presidency. Bloomberg basically has another central park five situation on his hands.

He best option is to sit it out, because he's going to catch hell from minorities specifically from African Americans and Latinos because of stop and frisk.

r430 I only hope that when Trump goes down, he pulls the entire GOP down with him.

Would serve those sociopathic motherfuckers right.

Voted at 6 am in Alexandria Virginia More than 100 people in line.

Good Lord, these thin-skinned deplorables. Once more: A vote for Republicans is a vote for the supremacists, abortion loons, conspiracists and liars. Deplorables have embraced the characterization. If you vote for Republicans you many not be one of the above, but you are A-OK with all of them running the party.

Machines at a polling location in Gwinnett GA were down for hours, they are finally back up.

I voted at 6:15 am in NYC and then took this pic.

LOVE IT, R436!

I see the “concern Troll” accuser Troll has made his appearance. How he thinks he’s being helpful, funny, or informative, I cannot imagine.

Be sure to report any fuckery and bullshit you encounter to 866-687-8683 (866-OUR-VOTE):

• If they say you dont have proper ID, call the number (especially if you know what's required).

• If your polling place's machines malfunction or go down, call the number.

• If they run out of ballots, call the number.

• If the polling place is moved or closes early, call the number.

• If the poll workers say you're not registered and you know that you should be, call the number (in addition to asking for a provisional ballot and receipt).

• If you or anyone else you see has ANY problems voting, call the number!

it is a beautiful day in SW Ohio! Mostly sunny but a bit windy. Perfect for blowing the repug trash right down into the gutters.

Will vote after I walk the dog. Can't wait to kick shabby chabot in the cunt. Bring it home, Aftab!

Let's rid the statehouse of the rethug stench as well! Rich Cordray for governor!

Registered for CarPool Vote in my zip code, in case anyone needs a ride to their polling place. I think that's better than waiting for the results.

Hear hear r440! I already sent in my absentee ballot to the Buckeye State.

[quote]If the poll workers say you're not registered and you know that you should be, call the number (in addition to asking for a provisional ballot and receipt).

Your provisional ballot is likely to end up in the trash so try your best to get the real thing.

Trump was trying to distract the Democrats with his immigration stunt. It didn’t work. For the first time the Democrats didn’t fall for the Repug bait.

Yeah the Ohio and Wisconsin governor races are getting a bit drowned out by FL and GA in the media, but those are big races.

I'm constantly seeing posts on social media from gay people voting in Ohio. Who knew there were this many gays in Ohio?

Did you even watch "Glee" r446?!

Why does MSNBC and CNN after every commercial segment, renew programming with Trump speech clips. Am so sick of them showing this character.

His extensive campaigning at taxpayers expense, is not joy either.

Shee still has not shut up over luv of Kavanie.

Are there any early signs indicating a good outcome for dems? High turnout in minority districts, that sort of thing. Normally in other elections my feed is full of them, but today not a peep. What’s going on?

R450, the news media are being very careful to avoid a repeat of 2016. Expect very little on this until after the polls start closing.

You can find reports of high turn out wherever you look r450, we can already tell this is going to be a high turn out midterm, much more than 2014. The early vote made that obvious.

Trying to read into it more than that is unwise.

As if we needed another reason to love her:

A precinct in Louisville KY ran out of ballots because of a higher than expected turn out.

That sounds like sabotage, R454. How does it hurt to order extra ballots to be on the safe side?

Interesting tweets on this thread from people saying where they voted, what the lines were like etc, most of which sound encouraging. I'm not an American but finger's crossed for a big blue Aussie beach type wave. I think hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people around the world are following this with interest. Sorry, but not many people like your president. :)

R455 - it could be, yes but I wouldn’t be as quick to say it was a purposeful action to sabotage the vote. It happened in a number of precincts in 2016 here in NYC. Most (the majority even) of the government agencies responsible for running the elections are woefully underfunded across blue and red districts so you do get broken machines, not enough poll workers, limited funds to order/print ballots. Now who approves the funding and whether that’s purposeful (the under funding) is another discussion, but as has been said, the poll workers have such little control over anything, I’d hesitate to call it sabotage just yet.

That may be very GOOD news, R454. KY, may have FINALLY awakened!!! So many people down there are SCREAMING about healthcare--even though they voted in McConnell, Matt Bevin, and Trump. Many are realizing that maybe ObamaCare (shhh... they still don't lie to say that name), KYNECT wasn't so bad. It's like Civil War down there over the matter.

It may have brought everyone out to vote.

[quote]Sorry, but not many people like your president. :)

No need to apologize. The majority of us don't like him either.

Major problems with the voting machines in Wake Co., NC’s second most populous county. The humidity from this weather is effecting the ballot counters for our ‘fill in the oval’ ballots. The uncounted ballots are being saved to be run through later. The NAACP has already asked to be present when the effected ballots are processed.

Donald Trump came into office with 46% approval, and it has remained lower than that his entire presidency. The majority of Americans have never approved of Trump.

He is the *only* President since we have tracked approval ratings to never average over 50% in the polls.

Republicans have really pulled out all their tricks today.

There are reports of broken machines, machines being run on batteries until they gave out (instead of having power cords), machines switching votes, lack of paper ballots, no trails, etc. Most of these problems naturally being in dem/minority heavy areas. In addition to their earlier tricks of not letting native americans vote and their usual stuff of closing poll areas and DMVs, etc.

I don't wanna say they'll win both house and senate but tbh I think they will. Dems already have to have to have more votes than repubs to even tie with them in house races, and repubs are doing everything they can to prevent people from voting.

r440 here reporting from SW Ohio again.

Polling place is packed! Even more packed than 2016. Poll worker said there was a line out the door and down the hallway. There wasn't even that big of a line in 2016.

People are coming out of the woodwork to vote! I am seeing many more POC today than in the May primary.

Even that gauntlet of campaign people one has to run to get into the building is a wave of blue! Usually it's Rethugs pestering the shit out of you. There is only one old, fat white man handing out trash for the worthless chabot. Everyone else is blue team.

Damn. I am excited and hopeful! Bring it home, big blue!

[quote] Sorry, but not many people like your president. :)

Yeah, well dislike is putting it mildly. Most of us hate the Orange fucker. He's a traitorous felon who is complicit in a criminal enterprise to loot and steal from the American people.

[quote]There are reports of broken machines, machines being run on batteries until they gave out (instead of having power cords), machines switching votes

Could these have anything to do with Ivanka's recent Chinese patents?

R463, why are you so sure that these are Dems getting out the big vote our rather than Kentucky-adjacent Ohioan deplorables? I'm hoping for the former, but don't like to get my hopes up—sometimes a big turnout is for the other side.

Apparently everyone is waking up. MSNBC is reporting (or wherever they are) that polling places are packed! And... the young people have arisen! We'll see...

Democrats have too many possible paths to victory in the house for Republican tricks to be the decisive factor r462. The playing field is BROAD encompassing areas all over the country.

I WANT THE SENATE TOO!!!!

A young Beto supporter just knocked on my door to make sure I had a ride to the polls. She was so excited! Whatever the outcome of the election, I hope this level of organization and mobilization bodes well for future elections. In Texas we'll have a multi-year fight to take control of the lege and statewide offices.

Beto is the best.

Even if you're a republican surely you can agree that Beto should win so you could watch Ted Cruz cry?

Yeah Beto is building a statewide Democratic network in Texas, and it was largely dead there. He is doing a lot of good for the future of Texas, even if he can't overcome the Republican electorate tilt tonight.

As long as Beto stays hot he will be popular.

I'm getting more excited as the day goes on, which is the opposite of 2016, when the dread was building...

Oh please, let it be the Blue Wave of all time.

I'm a European (French) and waking up this morning when I saw November 6th on the calendar I thought of you, my American cousins. I wish you the best of luck and results that exceed your expectations for the Democrats. When I wake up tomorrow the results should be all in and I hope it will be a good day.

Tissue. I need Tissue....

"82-year-old great-grandmother in hospice care votes for first time, dies just days after casting ballot"

An 82-year-old great-grandmother from Texas voted for the first time ever during this year's midterm elections. "She was very proud, and she kept saying, 'I voted. Did you vote? Who did you vote for?'" Moore said. Phillips encouraged her whole family to go out and vote.

(For some reason I believe she voted for Beto)

She better had voted Beto. Nothing grinds my gears more than old people who vote to make young peoples' lives worse and then die, ridding themselves of any consequence.

OPERATION SMACKDOWN 24 PERCENT COMPLETE

R477 does her vote still count? republicunts probably think it does not.

[quote] republicunts probably think

republican'ts possibly think.

Madonna voted all the way from Portugal.

Please vote Democratic so Madonna can move back to America.

I just saw a video on MSNBC of a 77 year old lady on oxygen in El Paso who started crying saying she was so proud to vote for Beto. I'm usually a cold, cynical asshole, but I teared up. As someone born and raised in El Paso, I am proud regardless of if he wins or not.

Steve King is blocking Iowa's main newspaper from covering him tonight.

will Madonna adopt a Portuguese accent now?

[quote]Please vote Democratic so Madonna can move back to America.

I am 64 and that is the first compelling reason to vote republican't that I have ever heard

I'm not sure I'll be able to vote unless this four-hour boner calms down.

[quote]Even if you're a republican surely you can agree that Beto should win so you could watch Ted Cruz cry?

Well... (if the news is any indicator) a lot of Republicans are going on the record and letting it be known that they have voted Democrat! Their reason(s); 1) They don't like the tone of the country now. 2) HEALTHCARE!

I would absolutely freak out if Beto wins. He is this generations RFK

[quote] I just saw a video on MSNBC of a 77 year old lady on oxygen in El Paso who started crying saying she was so proud to vote for Beto.

Me too.

Here is a link to the video. I hope it works.

I saw that too, R483. It made me tear up too.

You Tube link if the one above fails.

[quote]‘It Will Mean So Much’ If Beto O’Rourke Wins: 77-Year-Old Texas Voter | Hallie Jackson | MSNBC

Taylor Swift released a video today telling young people to vote.

wait how many places still use machines? I live in a nice blue area in a blue state and we have paper ballots. You can't go wrong with that. Why is any place still using machines?

The whole nation would freak out if Beto wins r489. Hard to say how incredible that would be, Doug Jones was running against pedro so that isn't even on par.

I don't expect it, but I do think it is going to be way closer than races in Texas are ever supposed to be. If Beto loses by only 2-3 points that is a crazy swing.

Pedo*

Vote for Pedro!

[quote]Well... (if the news is any indicator) a lot of Republicans are going on the record and letting it be known that they have voted Democrat! Their reason(s); 1) They don't like the tone of the country now. 2) HEALTHCARE!

It will be such a vindication for President Obama if the Dems win back the House on ACA.

Saw an interview with a voter in Virginia this morning. Older white guy. They asked him if President Trump influenced his decision to vote, and he said, "Yeah. I think he has destroyed this country with his racism. He's an embarrassment as President. He's dishonest and corrupt and it's a damned shame Congress has given him so much support."

I became irrationally hopeful. I wept.

Longest line (in the rain no less) I ever saw at my polling station.

At least as big a turnout for Pres. election.

That was touching R490. Kind of looks like a chain-smoking Helen Hayes...

Does anyone know what time we can expect some numbers?

This is very encouraging for Democrats in Arizona. I sure hope Kyrsten Sinema can win tonight.

If we could win in AZ and NV, and come close in TX, that would really help our electoral chances in the Southwest going forward. And we've been doing well in Colorado and New Mexico.

C'mon America...

Every scanner is broken at the Brooklyn Public Library so we’re now using the emergency ballot box. People have been waiting hours apparently.

That little old lady was hot. Damn my four-hour boner!

May the ghosts of Ann Richards and Molly Ivins pull Beto over the finish line tonight.

Porter County, IN opened some polling locations late, way late. (One was 90 minutes late.) A judge ordered that they stay open later as a result. GOP lawyers now fighting ruling. (Porter Co. is swing in pres. elections; Donnelly wd needs to do well here.)

- Women put 'I voted' stickers on Susan B. Anthony's grave

[quote]The first people arrive at 7:05am here at Mount Hope Cemetery in Rochester, NY to place their “I Voted” stickers at the grave of Susan B. Anthony. It was November 5, 1872 when Anthony illegally voted in the presidential election, resulting in her arrest.

[quote]The playing field is BROAD encompassing areas all over the country.

Spread almost as wide as Melania's legs!

R508 That's disrespectful...and taking selfies in a cemetary? /facepalm

Hey DL: Before the day gets long and crazy, a loving shoutout to Poll Troll and everyone posting. Here is just some food for thought.

In 2016 there were high hopes and stinging losses. Cons worked double-time to hype that loss, to over-emphasize the "mandate" for Trump, and to try and convince Progressives that their thoughts were wrong, their morals were wrong, and that they were being smothered in this newer, harsher, more vulgar world. Hillary Clinton still won the people's votes by over 3 million. Now we know--we have to be smarter about elections and the Electoral College. This year we know more than we did in 2016. Republicans, under current leadership, will never play by fair and equitable rules. Republicans will always attack, attack, attack whoever wins, whoever is in leadership on the Progressive side. Right now MSNBC is showing tweets from Republicans showing phony pics, stories, and posts (like ICE arresting voters at the polls) to suppress voter turnout. This kind of knowledge will become part of our fiber, and we'll get better at navigating nonsense.

I work with a woman who says "You don't know what you don't know, and once you DO know, you can't not know it."

Even if Progressives don't produce a blue wave tonight, or if results fall short of expectations, think of how much closer we are now to knowing the true makeup of the Republicans, and how much more skilled we will be in 2020. I will be happy tonight if we just hold the damn line, plus a little--that will show that the sound and fury from Conservatives has been just that.

We live in TX, and have been told forever that we'll be blue soon. Today I woke up and the local Fox station was saying that Cruz was only ONE point ahead of Beto. ONE POINT! No wonder Cruz kissed Trump's ass and they have been campaigning together. Beto might not win tonight, but he will in the future. I'd lay money on that. Allred is about to oust Pete Sessions, that old fool. Never thought that would happen. The earlier posts showing that early turnout is hundreds of percentage points higher, and that younger folks are finally showing up bodes well, according to history...but I'm not counting one chicken today. Not yet.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that if we will hold the line tonight, we're doing well, as it will expose the lies that the GOP is owning the Democrats. I'll be happy with the house, and hope for more--including governorships. I'll be happy with Beto biting Ted Cruze in the ASS so hard that ol' Spitball has to run for his political life the next six years. Any yardage gained tonight beyond the line of scrimmage will be progress, and that will fly in the face of what we've been told for the last two years--that our lives, our party, our values are dead. Far from it. We'll continue to awaken, and we'll thrive.

The first polls close at 6pm r506.

That's not at all disrespectful, R510. I'm not fond of selfies under any conditions but putting those stickers on her grave has become a ritual, a reminder of what she fought for.

I am surprised that very few trolls post in this thread right now. They must not be feeling very confident.

[quote]I became irrationally hopeful. I wept.

People may laugh and call me Mary but seeing and reading stuff like R508, R498, R493, R492, R477, just causes my eyes to well up with tears. So many people fought so hard to give equal rights to everyone. They have fought for fairness, etc. Basically, fighting for all those things that you have been taught from early ages of what this country is about.

To live and see all of that threatened by people like Trump, and then feel as if you're the only one affected by it all, is overwhelming. You feel as if only you can see what is happening. But then, you see the crowds. You see other people who see and feel as you do. It's just such a relief and happiness.

[quote]I am surprised that very few trolls post in this thread right now.

They have all slithered back to Free Republic to read comfort posts.

White-lady poll worker whiteladies black voter

Big turnout increase in Ohio Republican exburbs :(

Average wait time to vote in Atlanta metro area right now is about 3 hours, according to Sarah Henderson of Common Cause Georgia.

Go figure, R518 is the same poster that was lying about the Dems dropping in 538's forecast.

We were just talking about trolls...

Watching MSNBC all day. Makes me so ill when they interview GOP voters. I get fearful etc.

You bitches have me all optimistic!!!

Live coverage.

Brian Kemp should go to jail.

Well this might add a little more opti to your mistic R522

Thanks R520. Immediate block of R518.

Troll at R518.

[quote]Democrat’s odds keep falling in the 538 forecast, I don’t understand!?

[quote]Are there any early signs indicating a good outcome for dems? High turnout in minority districts, that sort of thing. Normally in other elections my feed is full of them, but today not a peep. What’s going on?

[quote]Big turnout increase in Ohio Republican exburbs :(

Thanks R527. Blocked him.

[quote]@benfelder_okc

[quote]Tiffany Eichner of OKC is a registered Republican but voted straight Democrat because of the Kavanaugh hearings.

[quote]Kendall Porter said she's a Republican supporting Edmondson because of education. She said she's turning into a "purple voter."

Another woman Repub voting Democrat:

[quote]Britni Hartsfield is a Republican and a teacher who said she voted for Edmondson.

For Senate watchers, a useful timeline:

7:00 p.m. EST: Key state: Indiana. The first real Senate test of the night and it's a contest that is coming right down to the wire, with Donnelly (D) slightly favored. The other Senate seats in this timeframe are expected to be easy victories.

7:30 p.m. EST: Key state: West Virginia. Manchin (D) is expected to win fairly easily. If he doesn't, it could be a bad night for Democrats.

8:00 p.m. EST: Key states: Missouri, Florida, Tennessee. Missouri is a dead heat and could go either way; Nelson (D) in Florida is favored to win, whereas Blackburn (R) in Tennessee is favored there. If Bredesen edges out Blackburn, expect a bad night for Republicans. You can also keep an eye out for New Jersey, where corruption charges have weakened Menendez. He's still expected to win fairly easily, though.

9:00 p.m. EST: Key states: Arizona, Texas, North Dakota. Sinema (D) has a very slight lead in Arizona; Republicans are expected to win the other two. Still, the early voting turnout in Texas has generally been favorable for O'Rourke (D), so this one might go to the wire, particularly if it's a bad night overall for Republicans.

10:00 p.m. EST: Key states: Nevada, Montana. Nevada is a tossup, although the dean of Nevada vote-counting, Jon Ralston, has said that Rosen (D) is favored to win. Tester (D) is favored to win in Montana, unless the Libertarian candidate's support for his Republican opponent sways the election.

Why does Manchin still have a D next to his name?

Enough of that silliness r533, you'd much rather have Manchin than a Republican in that seat. He is as blue as you'll get in WV.

Outside the Senate, here are some other "canaries in the coal mine" races to look out for.

Meanwhile, from the dark side:

Rock 'n' roll:

So the poll that’s never been wrong is accurately saying “a majority of people think Rs will keep the House.” That doesn’t mean that Rs will. It just means that Gallup is likely correct that a majority of people THINK Rs will.

It really shows how scarred Dems are from 2016 r536. We are scared of expecting victory.

All good, better to be surprised than disappointed.

Interesting, R536. We shall see if that stand or not.

[quote] I'm getting more excited as the day goes on, which is the opposite of 2016, when the dread was building...

I'm still not letting myself get excited. The dread didn't start building in 2016 until around 8pm Central for me. It was Florida that started the dread...unsurprisingly.

It feels eerily similar to 2016: high expectations for two years and then an extremely energized republican electorate on Election Day :(

No power cords at one GA voting place, judge ordered it open for an addition 25 minutes.

Yeah but seriously how many fucking Dems were energized? I like Hillary and voted for her but she was just not exciting. It's different this time. Onward to victory!!

Georgia seems to be the state with the most problems today. Hmmm, I wonder why?

Please, we can do this without dragging Hillary Clinton into this, R544.

I agree, r544 . I think hatred of the orange fascist is a very strong motivator.

In 2016 a lot of Dems honestly did not think Trump COULD win.

[quote] I agree, [R544] . I think hatred of the orange fascist is a very strong motivator.

Women have been motivated to a large extent because of what happened to Clinton in 2016. All year long, in fact.

I see from the missing post at 542 the troll is still going. If people FF it, it won't be able to post.

Just saying.

I don’t understand American politics, but I’m watching you, America.

I'm out of FFs, so those of you who have any left use them on R542.

[quote]Democrat’s odds keep falling in the 538 forecast, I don’t understand!?

[quote]Are there any early signs indicating a good outcome for dems? High turnout in minority districts, that sort of thing. Normally in other elections my feed is full of them, but today not a peep. What’s going on?

[quote]Big turnout increase in Ohio Republican exburbs :(

[quote]It feels eerily similar to 2016: high expectations for two years and then an extremely energized republican electorate on Election Day :(

I think Oprah and Obama coming Georgia last week may have actually worked. I see a lot of minorities specifically African Americans in long lines and some literally raped around the building and going down the street. People really like Stacey Abrams a lot. But I also see a lot of diversity to.

She just might get the governorship. I hope so anyways. I just don't want to talk to fast.

Oprah and Obama both said overwhelm the system, and it looks like that's happening. Here's hoping for the best.

Blonde Norwegians are welcomed to emigrate to the US!!

It got mine r551

Didn't mean to bring Hillz into this but the temperature of the electorate is at a fever pitch for D's!! It really is!

[quote]I see a lot of minorities specifically African Americans in long lines and some literally raped around the building

Voting is dangerous!

Long lines are also just a structural problem of GA elections r552. It's a feature not a bug, they want to discourage voting.

[quote]That reality is that the Republican Party has always been composed of extremists whose beliefs are antithetical to democratic government, and our Constitution. Period.

Fixed.

[quote]Women have been motivated to a large extent because of what happened to Clinton in 2016.

Colbert and Seth Meyers are going live tonight. Not sure about KImmel. Don't ever remember that happening for a mid-term before.

[Quote]An amazing stat given to me by Davidson County Elections Administrator Jeff Roberts just now. Election Day vote totals across Nashville's 35 largest precincts have already surpassed the Election Day turnout at those precincts in the 2016 election. That's massive turnout.

R557 No these lines are actually moving pretty quickly. Some of these voting precincts have just gotten new machines and there's plenty available. That's a good thing.

In a deeply red state, I am wearing blue today to reflect how I voted. The polling place was the busiest I've seen in my 8 years of living here.

Ivanka gets patent on voting machines.

[quote]I see a lot of minorities specifically African Americans in long lines and some literally raped around the building and going down the street.

Take it easy. Those people are always raping each other!

R564, Ivanka is getting ready to run for President. You can’t just fully rely on Russian interference anymore these days.

Voted straight democratic in Iowa's first congressional district....which is a battleground race. Hope Abby Finkenhauer wins. And we get a democratic governor.

Please tell me this is satire

Fourteen minutes til first exit polls come out. I don't trust exit polls since they failed in 2004 and 2018, but I think/hope people will actually be honest this time around. Especially since Trump isn't on the ballot.

This place is sending free pizza to those waiting in line so they won't leave. what a great idea

Will this thread ending affect the midterms?!

[quote]Fourteen minutes til first exit polls come out. I don't trust exit polls since they failed in 2004 and 2018, but I think/hope people will actually be honest this time around.

Spare yourself the grief -- pay no attention to exit polls.

As Steve Schmidt said, George H. W. Bush didn't win the TX senate race but won the Presidency. Hoping Beto will have even better luck.

Trump won in TX by 9%. If Beto ends within a couple percentage points of Cruz, it will be massive progress. I dare not hope that he'll pull off a win, though certainly keeping fingers crossed.

The Exit Polls tried to reactivate the warp drive, but they failed, and were destroyed by the Romulans. That's why today, all cabbages are red.

I don't think the exit polls were ever wrong. It is that there was cheating so the wrong person was announced as the winner.

Last summer, as somebody said of the possibility of Oprah running: if a black woman runs for President, every black person will vote. We'll drag people to vote if we have to, out if their houses, out of the stores, out of the salons.

You're seeing that come to pass with Abrams.

Why does the troll keep trying here?

Wolf Blitzer is now in position to start screaming projections! Turn your volumes down accordingly

^^ We're also seeing her competitor doing everything in his power to stop black people from voting. Don't get cocky. It's not over until they count the last vote and even then if it's close he'll demand a recount.

Perhaps he'll scream to loudly the ceiling will collapse on him!

Lock Kemp up for voter suppression!

First Dem flip of the night: Lou Leon Guerrero wins Guam's gubernatorial election. The GOP held this office for the past 8 years.

For anyone moaning or being lazy and saying “my vote won’t make a difference anyway”, send them this article!

Every single vote matters!!

I hope the midterms will follow the trend of the recent VA, NJ, PA-17, and most of all the AL senate, elections.

Anyone remember how the exit polls did during those elections?

Remember, a vote for Ted Cruz is a vote for me!

Kimmel was in Las Vegas this past weekend campaigning for Rosen the Democrat running for Senate.

Cause we all want to see exit poll data even though we (rightly) talk shit about it

CNN Exit Poll of Trump Approval

Approve of Trump: 44%

Disapprove of Trump: 55%

Darrell Issa (CA) has already conceded! He’s such an asshole!

Snaps for Guam. Keep ‘em coming.

R586, really? Wow, I can't ever remember an active late night host campaigning for someone.

There's a big difference between a host of a night talk show and host of a purported political "news" program.

Poor Robby Mook sending out his warning about exit polls

[quote]Warning: exit polls are like online dating profiles. Things may not be as they appear. And they may break your heart.

Eww, R568. Don’t share that self loathing f a g’s shit here.

Considering all the interest, and thoughtful, reasoned commentary all the election threads have generated, here’s a suggestion for a new/future thread post elections - “How would you change the way we run elections in the USA?” - everything from campaign finance, term limits, mandatory voting, shorter campaigns, etc.. I think we’d have some good ideas!!

Is there a Part 4? Or, shall I make one?

Is this what happens when enough DLers vote?

Probably should just call it Election Results or something r595, the first polls close in 30 minutes so it is right on time.

**OFFICIAL** 2018 Midterms Elections Thread Part 4! RESULTS!

CONTINUE ON TO VICTORY!

Hope y'all are ready for two more years of this garbage and probably more than that unless we start eating rich people starting with the Koch brothers

R565 - That is an historic gravesite! Tacky fraus need to keep their shitty stickers OFF her marker! What the everliving Instagram fuck. Only hipsters and fraus would think that's "poignant."

Bajour

***Hot Race***

In Rowan County, Kentucky, Clerk Kim Davis is in a tight re-election race.

She's in charge of conducting the election, and she hires family members, so hope there are some independent watchdogs.

Wish her opponent luck.