Democrats Dominate 2023 Elections Despite Joe Biden's Low Poll Numbers; Republicans Struggle in Red States
Joe Biden's low poll numbers did not hamper the big Democratic wins during the 2023 elections as Republicans mostly struggled even in red states. However, the issues at hand were not just Biden vs. Trump but also other things, such as abortion rights.
The 2023 elections were all local, from state legislature to governor, but these could affect the US at a national level and not just at the state level.
As ABC News pointed out, the results could be interpreted in two ways; the races were all localized and dependent on individual candidates so national politics had no bearing on who won or lost. The other possibility for the Democrats dominating the 2023 vote was that voters were able to separate Democrats from Joe Biden and just focus on the current issues surrounding their locales.
In deep-red Kentucky, Democrat Andy Beshear was re-elected governor while in Virginia, Democrats not only held on to the Senate majority but also flipped the House of Delegates, eking out a small majority there. Over in red Ohio, two liberal ballot measures passed easily, including enshrining abortion rights into the state constitution.
"Across the country tonight, democracy won and MAGA lost," Biden said on social media. "Voters vote. Polls don't. Now let's go win next year."
While Biden is struggling in his popularity right now, the Democratic Party as a whole was successful in making voters focus on the issues. This also does not mean that Red State voters voting blue would reflect in 2024, though, as experts still think that a Republican candidate would win in these red states next year despite voting blue this year.
Republicans did manage to get a sigh of relief in Mississippi, though, as Republican Gov. Tate Reeves is projected to win reelection, beating Democrat Brandon Presley, the cousin of music legend Elvis Presley.
Democrats Win Big in Virginia as State Legislature Becomes All Blue
The 2023 elections had been bad for Virginia Gov. Glen Youngkin as not only did Republicans fail to take the State Senate, but Democrats also managed to flip the state's House of Delegates blue.
The Republican governor had been very active in campaigning for Republican candidates for either chamber of the State Capitol with the aim of Republicans having complete control of the government. This spelled bad news for Youngkin who has some national ambitions himself.
Democrats won 54 seats in the House of Delegates, gaining the majority. Over in the Virginia State Senate, Democrats won 21 seats while Republicans only won 18, preserving their majority.
Abortion Still Biggest Issue During 2023 Election
Abortion rights were on the ballot in several states and as shown in the results of Democrats mostly dominating the 20-23 races, many abortion-related initiatives also won in a huge blow for anti-abortion advocates.
This is shown the most in Ohio which has now voted to protect abortion rights in its constitution. Over 56% of voters supported the amendment to guarantee the right to abortion and other reproductive rights in a state that was handily won by Donald Trump twice.
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Written by: Rick Martin
WATCH: What 2023 election results may signal for 2024 - CBS