As goes Kansas?

A narrow GOP victory in a special election might not be a fluke

Congressional Republicans, now back home for the Easter recess, would do well to take a moment and ponder the results of a special election held last week in Kansas’s 4th Congressional District. Incumbent Mike Pompeo resigned his seat in January when President Donald Trump nominated him to be CIA director, and Tuesday’s election was held to select a replacement for the remainder of his term. The 4th is a solidly Republican district, and yet the GOP nominee — state Treasurer Ron Estes — squeaked out only a 6point win against an underfunded Democratic opponent.

It is a dicey proposition to read too much into special elections to the House of Representatives. Turnout tends to be quite low, and local factors can skew results one way or another. That could be especially true in this case. Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback is immensely unpopular in the state, and Mr. Estes, as state treasurer, is naturally linked to his administration.

Still, the results were notable — especially in Topeka, the state capital and the biggest population center in the district. Mr. Trump won Topeka comfortably against Hillary Clinton in 2016, but in the special election, the vote was split more or less down the middle. In many respects, Topeka is your typical Midwestern city. So, to see the Democratic nominee claim half the vote could be a sign of rising voter discontent nationwide.

Or it could just be a fluke. That’s the trouble with special elections.

Still, congressional Republicans would do well to confront the plain fact that, though they have had complete charge of the government, they have no substantive accomplishments to show for their time in power. Worse, they do not even have any big achievements working their way through the pipeline.

The only real thing they have managed to do, with a big assist from Mr. Trump, is infuriate the grass roots of the Democratic Party. That anger was definitely on display in Kansas this week. The early vote in the special election ran nearly 2-to-1 against the GOP, suggesting that Democrats were chomping at the bit to send a message to Republican-controlled Washington. Being as the election was held in central Kansas — one of the most Republican places in the country — there just were not enough Democratic enthusiasts to overcome the natural edge the GOP enjoys.

But that will hardly be the case in every election. Indeed, a special election is taking place Tuesday in Georgia’s 6th congressional district — an upscale suburb of Atlanta — to replace Tom Price, whom Mr. Trump named as secretary of Health and Human Services. The Democratic nominee, Jon Ossoff, has raised a startling $8 million for his campaign. Most independent analysts now rate this race a toss-up, despite the fact that it has been comfortably Republican since 1979, when it elected Newt Gingrich.

Last week’s battle in Topeka, and the upcoming contest in suburban Atlanta, should remind the GOP that it did not acquire control of the government because of anything the party itself did. Voters were unhappy with Democratic control, and because ours is a two-party system, the GOP was the only alternative. Republicans won big elections in 2010, 2014 and 2016 for that reason — and that reason alone.

But things have changed. The GOP is now the governing party. There is no more free-riding off unpopular Democrats like Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid. It must now rise or fall on the basis of its own accomplishments. Can it deliver on the campaign promises it has made?

So far, the answer has been a resounding no. The Republican Party has accomplished nothing of major import to date. If anything, it has just embarrassed itself — with its epic failure to replace Obamacare and Mr. Trump’s erratic and outrageous behavior from the Oval Office.

Congressional Republicans still have time to right the ship, but they better get to it. Or else Topeka will not be the last place to turn against the GOP.