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Departments Election Issues Did the “Liberal Media” Get the 2004 Election All Wrong? by Gene C. Gerard January 16, 2005 In the days and few weeks immediately following the election last year, the media pronounced gloom and doom for the Democratic Party and its constituents, such as gay rights advocates. Journalists and media outlets of the left and the right, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, and Newsweek, among most others, announced that the Democrats were down and out, and that the evangelical Christians and the Republicans were the rising power. They divided the country into red states and blue states, and offered up glossy maps to show that most states were red and therefore Republican strongholds. The New York Times, in a special news analysis, announced that “President Bush’s re-election is the clearest confirmation yet that America is a center-right country.” Newsweek was even bolder, reporting not only that the “GOP may be the majority party for the foreseeable future,” but that “red-state Democrats are a diminishing breed.” The media even succeeded in encouraging the venerable Democratic strategist James Carville to say, in an interview only forty-eight hours after the election, “We are an opposition party and not a particularly effective one. The Democratic Party died Tuesday.” Now that two months have passed, the dust has settled, and the election has finally been concluded (Washington’s gubernatorial election was not decided until December 30), perhaps it would be worthwhile to look at a few of those red states. Did the media get it wrong, or at least exaggerate a bit? Were the Democrats and their values trounced in the election? Arkansas was one of those red states on election day. Bush won the state by a healthy nine percent margin. Yet the state re-elected Democrat Blanche Lincoln to the Senate by a 12 percent margin, and of the four House seats up for grabs, Democratic incumbents won three, and by an average margin of 24 percent. And while the state voted against same-sex marriage, last month the Arkansas courts ruled that a state regulation banning gays from being foster parents was unconstitutional. Pulaski County Circuit Judge Timothy Fox ruled that a 1999 ban by a state agency had nothing to do with protecting the health and welfare of children, but was an attempt to regulate “public morality,” which is beyond the agency’s power. Judge Fox also found that the children of gay parents are as well-adjusted as any other children. Red, you say? In Colorado, Bush won by a comfortable five percent margin. Yet the state preferred Ken Salazar, a Democrat, over his Republican Senate opponent, Pete Coors, by four percent. And of the seven House elections, Democrats won three, and one was not even the incumbent, John Salazar, Ken’s brother. Montana is presumably the most red of the Western states. Bush handily won there by 20 percent. But a Democrat, Catholic rancher, Brian Schweitzer, won the election for governor, the first time a Democrat has in 20 years. And in the state legislature, the Democrats picked up seats, giving them control for the first time since 1977. And on the ballot initiative to legalize the medicinal use of marijuana, 62 percent voted in favor. Although the state voted to ban same-sex marriage, last month Montana’s Supreme Court ruled that the state’s public universities must provide health insurance benefits to gay employee’s partners. Writing the majority opinion for the court, Justice James C. Nelson noted that “sadly, many politicians and ‘we the people’ rarely pass up an opportunity to bash and condemn gays and lesbians, despite the fact that these citizens are our neighbors and serve their communities in the same manner as heterosexuals.” That doesn’t sound very red. Although North Carolina, another so-called red state, voted for Bush by a 12 percent margin, the state also re-elected Democratic Governor Mike Easley by a 12 percent edge over his Republican opponent. And while they preferred Republican Richard Burr for the Senate by five percent instead of former Clinton Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles, of the state’s thirteen House seats, Democrats won six . Bush won North Dakota by a 27 percent margin. Yet the state re-elected Byron Dorgan, a Democrat, to the Senate by an even greater margin, 36 percent. And the state’s only House seat was won by the Democratic incumbent by 20 percent. It would seem as if the Democrats did pretty well for a red state. In Texas, surely the most red of the Southern states, given that it is Bush’s home turf, things were not as bad as one might have expected for the Democrats. While Bush won by 23 percent, the Democrats won a third of the House seats. Of those, two were by non-incumbents, no small feat in and of itself, given that the state’s legislature gerrymandered the Congressional districts such that Democrats were at a huge disadvantage. Even Bush’s own district in Waco went to a Democrat. And in Dallas County, the residents elected a female, Hispanic, openly-gay Democrat, Lupe Valdez, as sheriff. West Virginia, where Bush won by 13 percent and the Republicans maintained control of the state legislature, the Secretary of State, Democrat Joe Manchin, won the governor’s election by 29 percent. Of the state’s three House seats, Democratic incumbents won two, by 36 and 30 percent margins. And while neither of the state’s Senators were up for re-election, it is worth noting that both are Democrats. In retrospect, it does seem as if the media’s announcement of the fall of the Democratic Party was overstated. While John Kerry did not win the presidency on behalf of the Democrats, they didn’t really do as poorly as was reported. It’s true, they lost four Senate seats and a small handful of seats in the House of Representatives. But they maintained the balance of power in many states, and even gained control in others. Given that, why would the media, which as conservatives are fond of saying is left-leaning, if not liberal, report otherwise? Perhaps because the media just isn’t that liberal. Email this article to a friend |
Don't forget to check out articles from 2007 and 2008
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"Important daily voting news"
December 4, 2005
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"Poll shock"
November 24, 2005
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"Ohio's Diebold Debacle: New machines call election results into question"
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November 20, 2005
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November 16, 2005
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November 11, 2005
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November 10, 2005
Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
"Scrap the "secret" ballot - return to open voting"
November 5, 2005
Lynn Landes
"Clarification of NEDA's withdrawal of Ohio exit poll paper"
November 5, 2005
Kathy Dopp
"Clarification of NEDA's withdrawal of Ohio exit poll paper"
November 3, 2005
Kathy Dopp, National Election Data Archive
"Watergate-style money laundering indictments stoke Ohio's stolen election fires"
October 28, 2005
Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
"Powerful Government Accountability Office report confirms key 2004 stolen election findings"
October 26, 2005
Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
"Did you erase your own vote?"
October 25, 2005
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"Why can't the left face the Stolen Elections of 2004 & 2008?"
October 18, 2005
Bob Fitrakis and Harvey Wasserman
"Carter/Baker Report can't face how the GOP stole America's 2004 election & is rigging 2008"
September 20, 2005
Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
"Two Steps Forward, One Step Back"
September 20, 2005
Warren Stewart, Director of Legislative Issues and Policy, VoteTrustUSA
"FEMA Chief Brown Paid Millions in False Claims to Help Bush Win Fla. Votes"
September 19, 2005
Jason Leopold
"Ohio recount lawsuit set for trial; election workers indicted"
September 4, 2005
Blair Bobier
"Ohio Governor's ethics violations expose money trail to stolen 2004 election"
August 30, 2005
Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
"Diebold's failure in California"
August 7, 2005
John Gideon, Information Manager, www.VotersUnite.Org and www.VoteTrustUSA.Org
"Did the GOP steal another Ohio Election?"
August 5, 2005
Bob Fitrakis and Harvey Wasserman
"Conyers-Kaptur seek special counsel for Noe probe"
August 4, 2005
John Conyers, Jr. and Marcy Kaptur
"Dramatic new charges deepen link between Ohio's "Coingate," Voinovich mob connections, and the theft of the 2004 election"
July 29, 2005
Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
"None dare call it stolen - Ohio, the election, and America's servile press"
July 24, 2005
Mark Crispin Miller, summarized by Mary Anne Saucier, Columbus, Ohio
"Civic Engagement and the Restoration of Community from a voter activist’s view"
July 19, 2005
Terri Zins
"My report from Hocking County, July 5, 2005: An update on Sherole Eaton's unfolding Story"
July 7, 2005
Victoria Parks, Ohio Backbone Campaign
"Handbook for Ohio Voter Activists, Version 2.0"
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"Direct testimony: Presented to Election Assessment Hearing"
July 4, 2005
Richard Hayes Phillips, Ph.D.
"Log Cabin Republicans in Ohio"
July 4, 2005
Richard Hayes Phillips, Ph.D.
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June 28, 2005
Harvey Wasserman and Bob Fitrakis
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June 28, 2005
Justine Smith
"The DNC 2004 Election Report: An indictment of incompetence"
June 25, 2005
Steven Rosenfeld and Bob Fitrakis
"Corporate control of the election process"
June 22, 2005
John Gideon
"Introduction: Did George W. Bush steal America's 2004 election?"
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Bob Fitrakis, Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"Voter Confidence Committee Calls For Rejection of CA Special Election"
June 16, 2005
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"Activists from 25 states lobby for paper ballots on June 9 and 10"
June 10, 2005
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"Fear of riffraff"
June 10, 2005
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"Electoral Politics and the War: Lessons from 2004 and What the Anti-War Movement Should do in 2006"
June 8, 2005
Kevin Zeese
"Optical scan machines hacked in Florida"
June 2, 2005
Black Box Voting
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May 28, 2005
John Gideon
"Attack on election board whistleblower and leaked Blackwell threats re-fire Ohio's election theft scandal"
May 23, 2005
Bob Fitrakis and Harvey Wasserman
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May 6, 2005
Paddy Shaffer
"Carter Gets It – But Will His Electoral Commission?"
April 24, 2005
Kevin Zeese and Linda Schade
"Voter Perceptions and Political Deceptions: Federal, Ohio and Knox"
April 24, 2005
Mike Swinford
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April 17, 2005
Ilene Proctor
"National Conference on Election Reform Opens with Civil Rights Panel"
April 13, 2005
Abigail Thorton
"View from Another Planet"
April 13, 2005
Josh Mitteldorf
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April 12, 2005
Lynn Landes
"Democrats, Paper ‘Trails’ Aren’t Good Enough; Count The Damn Ballots!"
April 1, 2005
Lynn Landes, Online Journal Contributing Writer
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March 30, 2005
US Vote Counts
"As Blackwell Says, Ohio’s in 2004 was a National Model"
March 24, 2005
Steve Rosenfeld, Bob Fitrakis, and Harvey Wasserman
"Understanding the difference between paper ballots and paper audit trails"
March 20, 2005
Gary Beckwith
"Save Our Democracy"
March 16, 2005
John Irwin
"Republicans maneuvering to get Voting Rights Act killed"
March 10, 2005
Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr.
"Legal filing highlights Blackwell's hypocrisy in Ohio recount case"
March 7, 2005
Blair Bobier
"Selma 40 Years Later"
March 6, 2005
Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr.
"Exit Poll Madness - Analyst Steve Freeman & Company Offer False Choice"
March 4, 2005
Lynn Landes
"Libertarians To Testify in Ohio House: Modernize Ohio's Election Laws"
March 3, 2005
Robert Butler
"The New Voting Rights Movement Begins Here Today"
March 2, 2005
Steven Rosenfeld
"Voting in America"
February 28, 2005
Bob Babson
"The Mighty Texas Strike Force"
February 28, 2005
Nick Mottern - Documentary News Service
"Blackwell presidential election sanctions briefs"
February 22, 2005
Various individuals
"Representative Conyers and others file amicus brief in Ohio Supreme Court"
February 17, 2005
Dena Graziano
"Congresswoman Tubbs Jones Outraged at Blackwell's Failure to Appear During House Administration Hearing"
February 12, 2005
Office of Rep. Tubbs Jones
"Ohio Attorney-General's attack on election protection attorneys draws mountain of documentation on state's stolen election, including new study on exit polls"
February 3, 2005
Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
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January 31, 2005
Bruce O'Dell
"The last man to concede..."
January 29, 2005
Sheila Samples
"Report on Washington DC, January 6, 2005"
January 25, 2005
Avram Friedman
"Arkansas in 2004: Did Bush Really Win?"
January 24, 2005
Max Standridge
"New links"
January 23, 2005
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January 23, 2005
Justine Smith
"Plan B: Parallel Elections & Signed Ballots"
January 20, 2005
Lynn Landes
"Open Letter to Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro from Representative John Conyers, Jr."
January 20, 2005
Representative John Conyers, Jr.
"Open Letter to Warren Mitofsky and Larry Rosin from Representative John Conyers, Jr."
January 20, 2005
Representative John Conyers, Jr.
"Ohio's GOP Attorney General launches revenge attack on Election Protection legal team"
January 19, 2005
Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"What are they hiding in New Mexico?"
January 18, 2005
Warren Stewart, National Ballot Integrity Project
"In the Shadow of Dr. King, counting the vote remains a civil rights issue"
January 17, 2005
Bob Fitrakis, Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"Did the “Liberal Media” Get the 2004 Election All Wrong?
"
January 16, 2005
Gene C. Gerard
"'COUNT EVERY VOTE. EVERY VOTE COUNTS'"
January 16, 2005
Mary Anne Saucier
"Moss v. Bush moves on and movement continues"
January 13, 2005
Bob Fitrakis, Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"Rally Continues Drive for Democracy"
January 9, 2005
Mark Huntress
"Estimated vote count in Ohio"
January 8, 2005
Richard Hayes Phillips, Ph.D.
"January 6 Washington, D.C. rally report"
January 8, 2005
Nick Mottern
"Together, we moved three mountains"
January 8, 2005
Bob Fitrakis, Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"What the election challenge means"
January 8, 2005
David Swanson, ILCA
"Progressive Democrats lead historic voting rights protest as Congress ratifies flawed 2004 Electoral College tally"
January 7, 2005
Bob Fitrakis, Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"Arnebeck letter to Congress re Presidential Electoral Challenge"
January 6, 2005
Clifford O. Arnebeck, Jr.
"Senator Barbara Boxer, D-CA and Representative Stephanie Tubbs Jones, D-OH contested the election"
January 6, 2005
Free Press staff
"The "Crime of November 2": The human side of how Bush stole Ohio, and why Congress must investigate rather than ratify the Electoral College (Part Two of Two)"
January 5, 2005
Bob Fitrakis, Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"Status Report of the House Judiciary Committee Democratic Staff"
January 5, 2005
U.S. Rep. John Conyers and staff
"Seven key reasons why the vote must be challenged at the electoral college"
January 3, 2005
Rev. Jesse Jackson, Rainbow/PUSH Coalition
"Ten preliminary reasons why the Bush vote does not compute, and why Congress must investigate rather than certify the Electoral College (Part One of Two)"
January 3, 2005
Bob Fitrakis, Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"Verified election contest petitions and documents in Ohio Supreme Court "
January 2, 2005
The undersigned
"Distribution of voting machines by county in Ohio"
January 1, 2005
Andy Shifflette
"Did We Bounce An Election?"
January 1, 2005
Warren Stewart, votersunite.org
"Presidential election congressional hearing transcript"
January 1, 2005
Congresspeople Waters, Tubbs-Jones and Conyers and others
Selected articles from 2004
"Ohio's official non-recount ends amidst new evidence of fraud, theft and judicial contempt mirrored in New Mexico"
December 31, 2004
"Impossible Phantom Votes in New Mexico
"
December 30, 2004
"The 2004 Presidential Election: Who Won The Popular Vote? An Examination of the Comparative Validity of Exit Poll and Vote Count Data"
December 29, 2004
"Ohio GOP election officials ducking notices of deposition as Kerry enters stolen vote fray"
December 28, 2004
"Another third rate burglary"
December 25, 2004
"Hacking the vote in Miami County"
December 25, 2004
"Update from the Ohio Frontlines"
December 24, 2004
"Lawsuit Before the Ohio Supreme Court"
December 24, 2004
"Kerry votes switched to Bush and ballots pre-punched for Bush"
December 24, 2004
"Uncounted votes in Cuyahoga County"
December 24, 2004
"GAO report documents how easy it is to hack the vote"
November 15, 2005
"J30 Election Reform Coalition"
March 21, 2005
"The Un-mighty New Hampshire Jam Force"
March 21, 2005
"Petro sanctions democracy"
March 21, 2005
"Progressives helped concede election by conceding the moral high ground"
March 21, 2005
"We will not concede, or get over it, but we shall overcome"
January 23, 2005
"From Selma to Palm Beach to Columbus"
January 23, 2005
"Movement Heroes"
January 23, 2005
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