Democrats win state governor elections

WASHINGTON: Democrats won the governorship and all major positions in Virginia, a state that abuts the national capital, in an election that had come to be seen as a test of President Donald Trump, his policies and – most significantly – his unabashedly divisive politics.

Democrat Ralph Northam, a physician and Gulf War veteran, easily defeated Ed Gillespie, an establishment Republican figure who pivoted sharply towards Trump-style politics and issues by attacking illegal immigrants and defending confederate-era monuments towards the closing stages of the race.

However, the president grumbled in a tweet from South Korea that the Republican candidate hadn’t done enough to emerge victorious.

“Ed Gillespie worked hard, but did not embrace me or what I stand for... but with the economy doing record numbers, we will continue to win, even bigger than before!” he said.

But there was more bad news for Republicans and Trump. Democrat Phil Murphy picked up the governorship of New Jersey, reclaiming a deep blue state from Republicans who had ruled it for eight years under Chris Christie.

Christie’s public spats with hecklers made for good entertainment, but not enough to mask his obvious missteps – including one that had his officials shutting down an inter-state highway to punish a political adversary.