The News-Times

Democrats boosted by gains in Kentucky, Virginia

- By Emilie Munson

WASHINGTON — Democratic National Committee ChairmanTo­mPerezis feeling hopeful for 2020 after a Democrat unseated an unpopular Republican governor in deepred Kentucky and his party claimed both chambers in the Virginia legislatur­e for the first time in decades.

“Yesterday's victory was a victory for all Democrats,” Perez said. “What I learned from last night was that we indeed can win everywhere.”

Tuesday’s elections were a test of Democrats’ momentum and organizati­on, as the party readies for primaries that will winnow its pool of about a dozen presidenti­al hopefuls. The party is fervently working to seize the White House in 2020, while gaining ground in the House and Senate.

To do so, it will tap some of the same strategies used in Kentucky, where the DNC invested $900,000 in the race and the Democratic Governors Associatio­n poured in over $5 million, Perez said.

Blue wins did not extend to Mississipp­i where Republican­s snagged the governor’s mansion in an openseat race Tuesday. The GOP also saw downballot victories in Kentucky, suggesting that voters cast their ballots against Republican Gov. Matt Bevin, not the party.

President Donald Trump, who held rallies in Kentucky and Mississipp­i to boost the Republican candidates, applauded the results on Twitter. He planned to hold a rally Wednesday night in Louisiana, before the Nov. 16 runoff election between the South’s only Democratic governor and his Republican challenger. Early voting has already started in that state.

In Connecticu­t, where voters cast ballots in municipal elections Tuesday, the GOP flipped top town offices in Fairfield and Sprague, while Democrats saw pickups in Madison, East Haven and Colchester. Democrats claimed a highly watched openseat race in Middletown, while Republican­s won in Greenwich, a GOP stronghold where Democrats made inroads in legislativ­e races in 2018.

As Democrats win turf in suburban areas across the country, Perez saw a rejection of Trump’s policies, as well as direct opposition to the impeachmen­tbesieged commanderi­nchief.

“There have now been three elections in ’17, ’18 and ’19 and every single election has been a repudiatio­n of Trumpism, the politics of division. We’ve seen the politics that says ‘No you can’t have health care.’ The politics that says ‘We’re going to help people like me, Donald Trump, at the expense of everybody else,’ ” Perez said. “I approach today and every day leading up to the election next year with that same determinat­ion to make sure we’re focused on these critical issues.”

Onhealthca­reandthe economy, Perez minimized the difference­s between the 17 Democrats now running for president, who range from very liberal — like U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren, DMass., and Bernie Sanders, DVt. — to centrist — like former Vice President Joseph R. Biden and South Bend,

Ind. Mayor Pete Buttigieg.

All Democrats believe in prioritizi­ng workers over Wall Street and making health care more affordable, although they have diverse ideas on how to do that, he said. Different as they might be, the candidates all made a “unity pledge” when they joined the race to support and campaign for the eventual Democratic nominee, Perez said.

Whoever that nominee is, Democrats will deploy tactics tested in Kentucky and other states to push for a general election win. In addition to coordinate­d investment­s, Democrats bought 110 million cellphone numbers a year ago to give to all state parties, Perez said, to help campaigns reach voters.

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