First Signs Of The Blue Wave? Nearly Three Times As Many Democrats Seek Absentee Ballots For Special Election
Democrats are hoping for what they call a “Blue Wave” this November that will sweep them into power in Congress and put an important check on Donald Trump, and there may be some early signs of it coming.
An upcoming special election for Ohio’s 12th Congressional District is showing a big enthusiasm gap between Democrats and Republicans, the Columbus Dispatch reported. As the report noted, this district saw a surge of absentee and early voting from Republicans in 2016, but now Democrats appear to have turned the tide.
“With a week of early voting left, Democrats in the Franklin County portion of the 12th district have asked for almost three times as many mail-in absentee ballots as Republicans, 4,232 to 1,508,” the report noted. “The Democrats’ advantage is even greater among those who already have cast an early in-person vote: 87 percent of the major-party tallies, or 2,443 to 362.”
The race has gotten the interest of the Republican Party, who sent Vice President Mike Pence in an attempt to boost interest. Though the race is only one seat, it gives hope to Democrats looking to take back control of the House and Senate.
As the Huffington Post noted, the early indications point toward big wins for Democrats in November. The president’s party has lost seats in 41 out of 44 midterm elections since the 1840s, the report noted, and the party out of power picks up an average of 25 seats in the off-year election. That is likely to be even greater this year as Donald Trump’s approval ratings remain at historic lows.
Democrats need to flip 23 seats to take back the House, and there will be dozens of vulnerable Republican districts, the Huffington Post noted.
There could be signs of what Democrats are calling a Blue Wave that may not only flip the House, but give them an even bigger majority. A recent Quinnipiac poll found that Democrats hold a 12-point advantage on a generic ballot, The Hill noted.
“Although the Mid-term elections are more than three months away, Democrats, who are hoping to retake control of the U.S. House of Representatives, will be cheered by their double-digit lead on the so-called generic ballot,” assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll Peter Brown said in a release that accompanied the poll.
Tomorrow marks one month since @Ocasio2018's upset win in New York. Since then, Democrats have moved from +5.7 to +8.2 on the generic ballot. The national conversation often doesn't reflect what's happening in states. https://t.co/jAfFhpTa4s
— David Weigel (@daveweigel) July 25, 2018
While it is considered likely that Democrats take the House, winning back the Senate will be significantly more difficult. Democrats have more seats to defend and would have to not only hold onto their own races but flip at least one state previously considered solidly Republican.
