Dems take back the House

As the Democrats take control of at least 27 seats in the House, ensuring their control of the chamber for the first time since 1994, the election last night marks a shift in power in Washington. The status of the Senate is still in flux with three crucial elections undecided at press time. The Associated Press reported that Democrats picked up 27 previously Republican-controlled seats, including two in New Hampshire, three in Indiana and one in North Carolina. Reuters also reported last night that Republican Lincoln Chafee lost his Senate seat in Rhode Island, as did Pennsylvania's Republican Rick Santorum and Ohio's Republican Mike DeWine, according to MSNBC. Republican Senator George Allen in Virginia, as of midnight, was locked in a dead heat with his Democratic challenger Jim Webb. With only three more seats needed to claim the Senate, the Democrats are within reach of controlling both Houses of Congress. In Connecticut, incumbent Senator Joe Lieberman, lost the Democratic primary to antiwar democrat Ned Lamont, ran as an independent and won 49 percent of the vote. "This is the first time in twelve years that the Democrats have the house," Michael Goldman, lecturer in political science and a top Democratic political consultant, told the Daily last night. "For the past six years the President has had a policy that hasn't been scrutinized by anybody [in Congress]. That will change in a Democratic House" he said. Earlier Tuesday Political Science Professor Jeffrey Berry said that if the Democrats gain control of even one house of congress, which they seem to have done, then "they would gain a lot of control of public policy." "Both houses need to agree on legislation before it goes to the President's desk, so even if the republicans maintain control of the Senate [the loss of the House] would likely frustrate the President's plans," Berry said. Goldman cited the current war in Iraq as high on voters' list of concerns. "Iraq was definitely the biggest issue in this election," he said. Berry agreed. "More than anything [this election was] a referendum on Iraq and discontent with the lack of an exit strategy." While Berry said it not uncommon for an incumbent president's party to lose seats in Congress, "although it is more common in the first off-year election." In the 2002 election the president's party actually gained seats in both the House and the Senate, Berry said. "I think we're seeing nationally a backlash to the Bush administration. The Republicans that are in control right now clearly have gone too far over the edge with their extremist policies and the people are reacting against them," Massachusetts state Representative Carl Sciortino (LA '00) said. "I think that people are recognizing that this administration is corrupt and inept and are reacting to that first and foremost," he said. Young Republicans National Field Director and Tufts alumna Rachel Hoff (LA '04) working on the campaign trail in the critical and yet to be called Montana senatorial race between Republican Senator Conrad Burns and Democratic challenger Jon Tester, said she is "sad to see one of the houses go [Democratic]." "We are more than optimistic about the senate," Hoff told the Daily. "Two years of Democrat controlled House may just show the country that they need to vote for the Republican Party in 2008." According to FOX News, President Bush watched election coverage at the White House last night with friends and staffers. "This has been a disaster for the President. I think the next couple of days you see the James Baker report come out" Goldman said. "There is a new day dawning and we'll see more Baker and less Cheney." In regards to the Lieberman race in Connecticut, Berry thinks "the Democrats in Connecticut raised to a national level the discontent with Iraq," by nominating Ned Lamont over Lieberman. "It was a real wake up call to the Republicans, even though they had no one really in the race," he said. "It had a huge impact nationally." With the house now in Democrat control, Goldman expects a change in policy on Capital Hill. "[The Democrats] are going to have an agenda that is very different," he said. "People that belonged to the House prior to this administration knew that there distinct branches of government. For the past four years the House has seen as of an arm of the President and that is coming to an end," Goldman said. Berry said Democratic control of even one house of congress "would give them enormous leverage" in planning a legislative agenda and shaping the public discourse. Montana GOP chairman Karl Ohs, in an interview with the Daily, agreed with Berry. "[A Democrat House] is going to have an effect on our country," he said. "I don't think I like the idea of that." Ohs, who is working in the nail-bitingly close race senatorial race in Montana, said he believes Burns, who has served three terms in the Senate, will win. As of 1:54 a.m. CNN reported, with 29 percent precincts reporting, that Tester has 51 percent of the votes while Burns has 47 percent. Besides Iraq, Goldman said the economy, which Bush has been touting as strong in the past couple of weeks on the campaign trail, was a major issue in yesterday's election. "The Republicans have a disconnect with the economy," he said. "They cite the stock market, but then you have rising college education costs and people working two jobs." The Dow Jones average hit an all-time high yesterday. With at least one house of Congress under Democratic control, President Bush's agenda for the next two years will be greatly affected, according to Goldman. "George Bush has been a lame duck since the day he was elected the second time," he said. "From the second day you are elected to your second term you are a lame duck, so for Clinton in 1996 and Bush in 2004. "The campaign for president begins tonight." Rob Silverblatt and Kristen Casazza contributed reporting to this article.