By Jackson Haines
Managing Editor
With his wife smiling behind him, governor-elect Tom Wolf approached the podium in Utz Stadium to thunderous applause. He flashed a big grin, clapped, and exclaimed “Wow, this is great!” For him, it was. Wolf, a democrat and businessman, was elected Pennsylvania governor over incumbent Tom Corbett by a nine percent margin (54 to 45), making Corbett the first governor in state history to lose re-election after his first term.
But for Tom Wolf’s party, the night of Nov. 4 proved to be a long one. Locally, Tommy Tomlinson, the Republican incumbent, defeated his democratic challenger Kimberly Rose for the state senate seat. Frank Farry, the 142nd district’s state representative, defended his position against democratic challenger Gina Kiley. They won by wide margins, winning 62 percent and 64 percent of the vote, respectively.
Nowhere was the red tide of the Republicans as evident as on the national stage. In Pennsylvania’s 8th district, the House of Representative seat went to incumbent Mike Fitzpatrick, the Republican candidate. This is the third consecutive time Fitzpatrick has won that race. Otherwise, the Grand Old Party Republicans strengthened their hold on the House of Representatives, with Republicans having a net gain of 10 seats (they won 11 new seats, and lost one).
Just as political pundits had predicted, the Senate was snatched by the Republicans. Closely watched races in Arkansas, Iowa, Georgia and Kansas went Republican. In North Carolina, a state that was expected to re-elect democrat Kay Hagan, Republican Thom Willis won by the smallest of Margins. West Virginia, too, went red.
After a long, brutal campaign, Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell defeated his opponent, Allison Lundergan Grimes by a wide margin. With his party now on top, McConnell will likely become Senate Majority leader.
Republican candidates won the governorship in the traditionally Democratic states of Maryland, Massachusetts, and Illinois. Republican incumbents held off Democratic challenges in many other states.
With congressional control entirely held by the Republicans, pundits and observers are questioning what the president’s next move will be, and how he will relate with this new Washington. Obama had originally planned executive action on immigration, but postponed any decision on the matter until after the midterm elections. With that in mind, Obama is now expected to make his move. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is expected to be Senate Majority Leader now. Whatever comes of this election, pundits believe, is sure to be a gridlocked dance, crafted with giving the respective parties their best shot at winning the White House in 2016.
