OPINION:
Tuesday’s election results ought to have Republicans pausing for reflection. Energized by their opposition to President Trump, Democrats flooded the polling booths to reclaim the governor’s mansion in Virginia, hold New Jersey and install a Marxist as mayor of America’s most populous city.
None of this was unexpected. The Big Apple has long been an outpost of far-left activism, and Northern Virginia’s proximity to the federal city has rendered it a vassal to the Democratic Party. New Jersey hasn’t gone red since Chris Christie defeated an unpopular Jon Corzine three decades ago.
What’s troubling is how bad the Democratic candidates were this season. Jay Jones secured the job of attorney general in the Old Dominion, despite wishing death upon the children of his political rivals.
In Virginia, Winsome Earle-Sears proved she was no Glenn Youngkin. She lost by nearly 15 percentage points to CIA cutout Abigail Spanberger, who will be sworn in as governor in January. Guaranteed the protection of the establishment, Ms. Spanberger knew she could just stand woodenly during the debate and refuse to say whether she objected to sharing the ticket with Mr. Jones and his murderous musings.
New Jersey Gov.-elect Mikie Sherill, Ms. Spanberger’s former roommate, was equally evasive under questioning. A radio host inquired whether she leveraged her position as a member of Congress to make $7 million on a stock trade. She said, “I haven’t. I don’t believe I did, but I would have to go and see what that was alluding to.”
Most people wouldn’t have a memory lapse about a seven-figure windfall, but that was just the latest lapse in candor. Early in her career, she was caught in a kerfuffle over cheating at the U.S. Naval Academy. She reportedly was denied her spot in the graduation ceremony over her involvement.
Democrats now realize they don’t have to answer for the conduct or their wild stances on policy. Corporate-owned media outlets are eager to run defense for them, and freshly imported voters will pull the lever for anyone with a “D” after his name.
That’s how Zohran Kwame Mamdani became a shoo-in for New York City mayor. Residents faced the Hobson’s choice of lockdown enthusiast Andrew Cuomo or Mr. Mamdani, an avowed socialist who considers himself a foreigner.
“He is not an [American] at all. He was born in Uganda, raised between India and America. He is at home in many places. He thinks of himself as a Ugandan and as an Indian,” his mother, Mira Nair, told the Hindustan Times.
Mr. Trump cracked the code of how Republicans can win over left-leaning jurisdictions. His “America First” message attracted unprecedented support from across the demographic spectrum, including minorities and youths.
He ignored the conventional wisdom and spoke directly to the public about what he would do to improve their lives. Right-leaning candidates who fail to echo these ideas at the local level will never break through the blue barrier.
Democrats will continue to promote crazed politicians in gerrymandered districts. If the Republican Party lets them retake the House of Representatives, the chamber will drop into impeachment mode on the first day of the new Congress. Capitol Hill’s only mission would then be to sabotage the remainder of the president’s agenda.
Republicans who don’t want that to happen need to energize their base, clean up the voter rolls and redraw congressional district maps. Otherwise, the final tallies are likely to be grim.
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