RollCall's Shira Toeplitz makes a good point about the NY-20 race:
With the result of the special election in New York’s 20th district likely to remain up in the air for weeks, both parties were essentially robbed of the chance to take their rhetorical victory lap in a competitive contest that they were hoping would set the tone for the 2010 election cycle.
Advertisement
This rings true to me. At the end of the day, this is one House Seat -- no more important than the other 434 House seats.
But the importance of this race was, of course, greatly enhanced by the unusual timing of the race. And the PR/motivational considerations far outweighed the importance of gaining or losing a single House seat. The stakes were huge: A Tedesco win had the potential to create hope and momentum (and money) for the GOP going into the 2010 mid-term elections -- while a loss would be another potential nail in the coffin of the GOP (and a symbolic vote of confidence for Barack Obama).
Now -- depending on how long this drags on (at least until April 13) -- the impact has, at least, been postponed. Will it now be anticlimactic, or has this nail-biter piqued our interest? My guess is we are sick of races that don't end on election day.
... For now, it's essentially a tie -- and Americans aren't particularly excited by games that end in a "tie" ...
Join the conversation as a VIP Member