Singing Dixie: Southern Elections
Photograph of Governor-elect Andy Beshear of Kentucky. Photo courtesy of The Washington Post.
On 5 Nov., Democrats declared victory in a gubernatorial race in Kentucky and a legislative race in Virginia, while Republicans retained the governor's mansion in the deeply Conservative State of Mississippi.
American Democrats took the race in Kentucky, a state that President Donald Trump won by nearly 30 per cent of the vote, as a rebuke of the President, and a sign of the willingness of Republican voters to defect from their party.
Democratic Governor-elect, Andy Beshear, was able to defeat the Republican incumbent, Matthew Bevin, by 5,189 votes, according to The Economist. A large part of his victory came out of an increase of Democratic voters in the cities of Louisville and Lexington.
However, many political analysts doubt that the Republican defeat in Kentucky was truely a rejection of Mr Trump. Mr Bevin was incredibly unpopular in his state, though he lost by a relatively small margin. For example, Mr Bevin claimed that a teacher's strike led to an increase in sexual assaults against children, as reported by The New York Times.
Mr Beshear's victory will most likely kill the Republican attempts to roll back Medicaid programmes, a government health insurance scheme. However, the Republican supermajority in the Kentucky State Legislature will hinder Mr Beshear's policy aspirations.
As of the publication of this article, Mr Bevin has not yet conceded the election, citing ' significant irregularities'. However, his office has released little evidence for his claims and most state leaders, including Republican Senator Mitch McConnell, are sceptical of his claims.
There will be a recanvass on 14 Nov., at Mr Bevin's request, however, it is unlikely to contest Mr Beshear's victory. Mr Bevin does have the right to contest the election, which would allow for the Republican-controlled legislature to investigate the election, however, that move is unlikely, according to National Public Radio.
In Virginia, Democrats took control of the state legislature, primarily due to a population increase in the Northern suburbs. This result gave Democratic Governor, Ralph Northam, broader support in the state government, and much more leeway to enact future Democratic policies.
The Democratic victory may also be a sign that voters are willing to forgive the governor for a photo that emerged of him wearing blackface earlier this year, a scandal that almost ended his administration.
While Mr Trump heartily campaigned for Mr Bevin in Kentucky, he mostly stayed away from Virginia, due to his unpopularity in the state, as reported by The Economist.
The State of Virginia has been shifting away from Conservative Republicans for the last couple of election cycles, a sign that the race was less about Mr Trump, but more about the changing electorate.
Mr Northam will likely use his majority in the legislature to advance many Democratic policies such as an expansion firearm control legislation, voter registration reforms, clean energy initiatives, and a census boundary changes.
Meanwhile in Mississippi, Republican candidate, Tate Reeves, won a hotly contested gubernatorial election against Democratic hopeful James Hood by six points. Both candidates took this result as a sign of hope for the future of their parties.
Republicans celebrated their victory in the traditional Conservative stronghold of Mississippi. Mr Trump campaigned for Mr Reeves, and the state will likely continue to support him in 2020.
Democrats took the result as a sign of waning Republican support in the region. The race was carefully observed by the White House, uncharacteristic for elections in the Republican-dominated state.
Mr Hood is a Conservative Democrat, who opposes both abortion and firearm control. Despite his Conservative leanings and his long tenure as State Attorney-General, Mr Hood lost by a significant margin. This result undermines many Democratic claims that Mississippi Republicans are willing to defect from their party.
The continued Republican authority over the state government will most likely lead to a roll-back of Medicaid initiatives in the region, according to the Associated Press.
Southern Democratic candidates claim that their victories severely threaten Mr Trump's aspirations for reelection; however, their positions may not be as defendable as they claim.
Sources:
"The off-year elections were not a rejection of Donald Trump." The Economist, The Economist Group, 07 Nov. 2019,
Hauser, Christine. "Gov. Matt Bevin of Kentucky Is Criticized for Blaming Teacher Strikes for Girl’s Shooting." The New York Times, The New York Times Company, 26 April 2019,
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/26/us/matt-bevin-kentucky-teacher.html
Parks, Miles. "Skeptics Urge Bevin To Show Proof Of Fraud Claims, Warning Of Corrosive Effects." NPR, National Public Radio, 10 November 2019,
Pettus Wagster, Emily. Analysis: Democrats evaluating Mississippi election losses. AP, Associated Press, 10 Nov. 2019,