State by State Recap: Hawaii to Maryland

Our polling place locator is here as just another reminder to save time on Tuesday by voting early. In continuing in our theme from yesterday, I present you with the major developments for 10 more states. A quick reminder, these are events over the past few months that have influenced the election cycle, or are rather noteworthy.

Hawaii: Split Views

• Yes, President Obama was born here even though his skeptics think his birth certificate is a fake.
• Neil Abercrombie (D HI 1) resigned to concentrate on the gubernatorial race leading to a three-way special election won by the GOP (For those keeping score at home, this reduced the Republican magic number down to 39)

Idaho: Tea Party Strikes Again

• Tea party infighting produced an upset, Raúl Labrador, in the Republican primary in the 1st district.
• Governor Butch Otter (R) is one of only 13 incumbent governor’s seeking reelection this cycle

Illinois: Highly Competitive

• Had he not been elected POTUS, Senator Barack Obama (D) would be seeking his 2nd term.
• Primary season began with highly competitive races producing close outcomes where big-spending, establishment candidates couldn’t count on victory
• Both the Governor and Senator were not elected to their current posts
• Governor Rod Blagojevich (D) resigned and was indicted, his trial turned into a yawn
• Both Republican and Democrat candidates for Senate were hurt during resume review.

Indiana: Poor Timing

• Senator Evan Bayh (D) announced he would retire after the filing deadline closed allowing Democrats to avoid a primary and select Rep. Brad Ellsworth (D IN 8) to oppose former Senator Dan Coats (R).
• Mark Souder (R IN 3) resigned following the primary after getting caught in a sex scandal.
• Andre Carson (D IN 7) is the second Muslim to serve in the House.

Iowa: Looking Back while Moving Forward

• Senator Tom Harkin (D) gave up the chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee to become the chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee following the death of Sen. Ted Kennedy (D MA).
• GOP reached back more than two decades for their gubernatorial candidate Terry Branstad.
• Iowa Supreme Court rules in favor of gay marriage.

Kansas: Moving up the Ladder

• President Obama picked then Governor Kathleen Sebelius (D) as Health & Human Services Secretary and her replacement decided not to run in 2010 which made Senator Sam Brownback (R) a sure thing to leave Congress and become governor.
• GOP Senate primary to replace Brownback divided tea party types and the presumed “more moderate” Rep. Jerry Moran (R KS 1) was nominated
• Only 1 of 4 House members is running again.

Kentucky: Rand Paul

• Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnel (R) couldn’t get his protégé nominated for the open Senate seat when the tea party picked Rand Paul.

Louisiana: All in the Family

• Governor Bobby Jindal (R) flickered on and off the national GOP stage.
• The new mayor of New Orleans is former Lieutenant Governor Mitch Landrieu (D) whose sister is Senator Mary Landrieu (D)
• Tea partier Jeff Landry took out the GOP establishment choice in Republican primary for the open seat in the 3rd district which is all but assured to elect a Republican

Maine: The Governor’s Race

• There is a three way contest for the open governor’s race.
• The GOP gubernatorial nominee Paul LePage is from the say-what-you-think wing of the tea party.

Maryland: Some Things Never Change

• Voters have a rematch of the 2006 gubernatorial race
• Everyone in the House delegation is running again, no open seats.
• Senator Barbara Mikulski (D) is on nobody’s target list
• Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D MD 8) chairs the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
• Rep. Steny Hoyer (D MD 5) is the Majority leader

Today was the second of five entries in previewing each of the 50 states.  Tomorrow, we will tackle Massachusetts – New Jersey.

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