Predict the U.S. Midterm Elections!

[Whoha]

I like our method of limiting the franchise(making people get off their butt and go to the poll) and wouldn't change it

[Odin]

House: 210
Senate: 49
Governors: 21

[Odin]

Originally posted by Ben Kenobi
225 and 54

I think the Republicans can get away with only losing Chafee.

Governors, 25

[Dinner]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
Oh for sure. We really need more government mandates.

The system seems fundimentally broken in that we're lucky to get 1 out 3 people to vote. We should be making election day a manditory paid holiday, making it a legal requirement (like Australia does), or at least fining nonvoters as other countries do.

Something needs to happen to get people to actually fill their civic responsibilities.

[SlowwHand]

Put a ballot on a dart board and choose? What's the good in that?

[dannubis]

Originally posted by Oerdin


The system seems fundimentally broken in that we're lucky to get 1 out 3 people to vote. We should be making election day a manditory paid holiday, making it a legal requirement (like Australia does), or at least fining nonvoters as other countries do.

Something needs to happen to get people to actually fill their civic responsibilities.

In Belgium it is a civic duty to vote. I don't know if that is better though.

[Deity Dude]

Originally posted by Oerdin


The system seems fundimentally broken in that we're lucky to get 1 out 3 people to vote. We should be making election day a manditory paid holiday, making it a legal requirement (like Australia does), or at least fining nonvoters as other countries do.

Something needs to happen to get people to actually fill their civic responsibilities.

I feel it is my civic duty not to vote on issues that I am uninformed about or issues that I do not care about

[Odin]

Originally posted by Oerdin


The system seems fundimentally broken in that we're lucky to get 1 out 3 people to vote. We should be making election day a manditory paid holiday, making it a legal requirement (like Australia does), or at least fining nonvoters as other countries do.

Something needs to happen to get people to actually fill their civic responsibilities.

I rember reading somewhere that turnout was also relatively low in the 20's, maybe it's a cyclical thing.

[SlowwHand]

It's always disgustingly low.

[Imran Siddiqui]

But Sloww does his part... he votes twice

[Impaler[WrG]]

I agree with Mandatory voting such as Australia has, its acualy (from what I've heard) just a requirment that you go the polling place and put a ballot in the box, you dont HAVE to mark it for anyone. Infact I would even like to see a "non of the Above" option that could be marked and tabulated.

I'm going to put my tinfoil hat of ultimate truthyness on and predict massive systematic vote riging at all levels of the election process by Republicans (just like the last few elections) resulting in them holding any seat that seems even remotly concivable for them to win and a few witch are just obvious thefts. The media will ignore the obvious thefts, the Democrats will muter about the close losses and the people will do nothing. Congress shifts slightly towards the Democrates but enough to take either house.

[Ramo]

House: 210
Senate: 51 (losing PA, MT, OH, and RI)
Governors: 21 (losing NY, OH, MA, AR, CO, MD, NV, and MN)

[mrmitchell]

Congress shifts towards the Democrats. I don't know enough to say a whole number.

Arkansas 4th House District:
Mike Ross (D) over Joe Ross (R) by a blowout. Even Joe's own township in Union County will probably vote for Mike overwhelmingly. The word is that the Republicans found a Ross to nominate on the hope that voters will get confused. Mike Ross is the incumbent and ran unopposed in 2004.

Arkansas Governor:
Mike Beebe (D) over Asa Hutchinson (R) by 10% or more. There is no difference on most of the issues, but Asa's campaign has been terribly mismanaged, and a major mark against him is that he went to Bob Jones U for a year. Huckabee is vacating the seat due to term limitations, here's hoping he runs for President in 2008. So, this seat will swing back to the Democrats.

[Dinner]

http://www.electoral-vote.com/

That link is for people who don't like slate.com. They are predicting 49-51 split favoring Republicans in the Senate but that relies upon Allen winning in Virgina (the polls currently show a dead heat) as well as pulling cats out of the bag in Tennesse and Missouri. All three races appear to be dead heats and electorial-vote.com is calling the dead heats for the incumbant.

For the house they're predicting 227 Democrats, 206 Republicans, 2 Ties. That puts the house well into the hands of the Democrats. The real races to watch are now the Senate races in Tennessee, Virginia, and Missouri. Republicans must take all three to keep their majority, Democrats must take two to get the majority, and an evenly split Senate is very much a possibility.

[Bosh]

evenly split Senate is very much a possibility.

Evenly split = Republican control as long as Cheney ventures out of his cave occasionally.