, Columnist
Why Democrats Did Better Than Expected
They relied on an old-fashioned tactic: making their case to persuadable voters, especially on the issue of abortion.
What happens after the persuading.
Photographer: MARK FELIX/AFPThis article is for subscribers only.
As has been noted repeatedly, before and after this week’s elections, for the president’s party to do well in the midterms is unusual.
One of the few such cases on record, in 1998, came amid a sex scandal and with Congress already in opposition hands. Another, in 2002, happened under the shadow of 9/11. There is no similar controversy or cataclysm now, yet as of this writing, Democrats are favored to hold the Senate and have a puncher’s chance of holding the House, while actually gaining governor’s mansions and a couple of state legislative chambers.