Bonus: He Won

How a truck driver spent $153 on his N.J. election campaign to likely dethrone a political kingpin - nj.com

Bad day for Clueless Joe. Fortunately for him, he’ll have forgotten it by tomorrow.

Sweeney, a Democrat, is the longest-tenured Senate president in New Jersey history, having held the post since 2010. He was expected to serve a seventh term in the position before launching a possible bid for governor in 2025.

That was before he was taken on by a no-name challenger in Durr, 58, who has miraculously knocked Sweeney on his heels in a race that was never considered more than an afterthought.

“I joked with people and I said, ‘I’m going to shock the world, I’m going to beat this man,’” Durr said Wednesday afternoon. “I was saying it, but really kind of joking. Because what chance did a person like me really stand against this man? He’s literally the second-most powerful person in the state of New Jersey.”

To be fair. the $153 he spent was on his primary campaign. I am guessing he spent more on the general, and got assistance from the state and possibly even the national Party.

Possibly, but a Lot Can Happen in a Year. Or Three.

Red alert: Crushing defeat in Virginia could signal trouble for Democrats ahead (msn.com)

But in Virginia Tuesday night, the victory in the governor's election was scored not by Democrat Terry McAuliffe – rated the favorite when the race began – but by Republican Glenn Youngkin.

In New Jersey, an even stronger Democratic stronghold, Gov. Phil Murphy narrowly  defeated Republican Jack Ciattarelli in a race not called until Wednesday evening.

The results fortified Republican hopes of winning back control of the House and the Senate in next year's midterms. They complicated President Joe Biden's embattled efforts to push his ambitious agenda through a Congress under Democratic control, albeit narrowly.

I haven’t mentioned New Jersey, a race that was won by the Democrats by the narrowest of margins. It shouldn’t have been close. Neither should have Virginia. Democrats have to be nervous.

But a year ago, they were giddy. A lot can happen in a year. Always in motion is the future.

I make no predictions for 2022 or 2024. Ask me the day after the election and I’ll tell you who won. Maybe. Not before.