Republicans had a problem with voter turnout in 2017 which doesn’t bode well for their bid for gaining or retaining power in 2018, according to The Weekly Standard.
"As far as elections go, 2017 wasn’t a good year for Republicans," David Byler, the conservative political magazine’s chief elections analyst, writes in a column published Tuesday.
"Democrats won gubernatorial races in New Jersey and Virginia, frequently outperformed their baselines in special elections across the country and won a senate seat in Alabama — arguably the most GOP-friendly state in the country.”
Part of the problem is that “the Trump-iest voters — less well educated, often rural whites — don’t seem to be showing up in great numbers while highly enthusiastic Democrats are,” Byler argues.
He adds the GOP’s problems with turnout and vote share in the 2017 special elections add to the "growing cloud" of issues they face in 2018.
"Numerous incumbent Republican House members are retiring. The president is unpopular. Democrats are recruiting a large number of potentially viable congressional candidates,"Byler says.
While Republicans have some advantages (a congressional map that allows them to keep the chamber even if they lose the House popular vote, a Senate map with a lot of Democratic exposure) and there’s time for conditions to change, the data as a whole doesn’t look good for Republicans.”
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