Thurman's excuse for House 101 defeat

Democratic Party Chairwoman Karen Thurman takes stock of Linda McDonald's loss last night in the House District 101 race. In an e-mail, Thurman notes the abysmal turnout in Broward County and said the outcome hinged on early voters. Indeed, Republican Matt Hudson had won before precincts even reported.

"We absolutely must improve our absentee/vote-by-mail outreach," Thurman wrote. "It is time-consuming work to convince people to vote by mail, but the payoff will be huge if we get serious about this as Democrats. The Republicans have hit a ceiling. We have room to grow."

Comments

Damn Karen, you sure catch on quick! People have been saying that since 2000, and you finally caught on!

Now give yourself a cookie.

And just where were you as the Republicans were hitting the ceiling?

“WHAT!… We actually have to convince people to vote?”… Why the hell aren’t I told about this… someone get me another glass of Chardonnay, get Ausman in here, dammit… *hic-up*”

Another "Family Values" GOP legislator in Tallahassee. Hope he doesn't turn out like fellow Republican Rep Bob Allen.

[Chris Brudy]

Expanding absentee ballot outreach is merely treating the symptom, not the disease. The turnout is abysmal because people have given up. Those in the poorest areas are systematically disenfranchised. Many volunteers sacrificed their free time and money since the turn of the century only to have the new Speaker of the House surrender on her first day in office. People turn on CSPAN to watch Congressional Committees dicker over frog farm subsidies even as the Constitution is under the greatest threat it has ever faced.
The turnout problem is a product of the present Democratic leadership's utter failure, not the lack of an absentee ballot drive.

And to think thousands and thousands of brave young American men and women have died to protect and proclaim the wonders of American Democracy.

And it was democrat Mark Herron who tried to disenfranchise them in 2000

2:01
Show me a better system than American "Democracy" anywhere outside of a book of fiction.

Chris NOBODY is disenfranchised. unless you count the Democrats who won't get any delegates in Denver.

Some people don't vote because they are apathetic or don't know how. Some people do want to vote, but somehow, the challenge of registering and being able to provide picture ID coupled with the gargantuan task of actually getting to the polls on or about election day just eludes them.

But they are NOT disenfranchised. The constant (and baseless) claims that somebody is being disenfranchised is not only a huge lie, but it is also extremely damaging to our democracy.

Gee don't knock yourself over this election - everone knows that SW florida is owned by developers and realtors just waiting for the big tax breaks which will allow them to continue paving over the 'glades. did you think that they were going to vote for a Democrat???

2:44
First, show me where American Democracy still exists, and we'll talk.

Absentee ballot programs are all about money, paying for mail, hiring canvassers, and the like. Maybe the Democrats should start raising money to pay for these things.

I thought “disenfranchised” is what happens when a local McDonalds pisses off the home office!

It only looks like a ceiling if you keep digging the hole your in deeper, Karen.

3:46
Fine, then show me a better system than whatever it is you think we have. Anywhere.

I hear Mexico is pretty nice!… never mind, we have that. Oh, I know… how about Cuba!… no, got that too. Ummm… how about a fascist, communistic, monarchial kind of place… scratch that one too.

You’re right, I guess if you’re going to get fu*ked by a crooked, self-serving, corporate-owned, fascists political system… it really doesn’t matter where you are.

Franklin Sands' first election as House Demo Leader.

We're in for a very long cycle.

I hear the Dem Caucus is very frustrated with Sands.

The Dem Caucus is perpetually frustrated, at some level.

In Sands' case, the frustration level has increased markedly from the Gelber regime's.

[Brow Pow]

This was a winnable election for Democrats. It needed a lot more intensity and commitment and smarts.

The Broward portion of the district is very walkable, very accessible, very Democratic, basically begging to vote Democratic.

Spinning this loss won't help build a stronger caucus. It's time to come clean and admit mistakes.

McDonald camp knocked on 10,000 doors in Broward over last two weeks. Broward Democratic establishment did not lift a finger and told people the race was unwinnable.

If 6:23 P.M. is correct, Mitch Caesar should resign. That's outrageous. This was a winnable seat.

That seat was very winnable...very. All Broward had to do was show up.

5:30
Sands is not the Dem Leader yet. Gelber is still in charge until 2008.

[Marketeer]

Karen Thurman misses the point once again! Her candidate lost in HD 101 not because didn't vote by mail. McDonald lost becuase Democrats DIDN'T VOTE!

That should be the FDP's focus.

Until Democrats learn: (1) how to define a cogent "reason why" voters should support their candidates; and (2) how to communicate that "reason why" powerfully and persuasively to voters, they will continue to lose elections, irrespective of how many dollars and how much effort is expended trying to expand the Party's absentee outreach.

What we've got here is a failure not of process, but of leadership! And it ain't just her that I'm talkin' about.

The D's need new input. I have said it before, they need to hire a Republican who knows how to win. The D's just don't have it, cant get it, just don't know what the heck they are doing. At an all time high dislike for Republicans, the corruption, sex scandals and hypocrisy, there is no reason the D's could not win a race in their own territory. Instead of the head D working for the big R (Cardenas), the D better get a smart R to help them with camapigns. Who the heck is going to give the D party of Florida any money now?

[Seat Solid R]

You all are silly if you ever thought that seat was winnable and if Ds spent any time or money. Fact is the Ds still have the Rs on the run. Expect Rs to lose more state legislative seats in Nov.

It's hilarious how delusional the posters on here are. Why spend resources on a short race that didn't have the numbers. Everyone is playing a safe hand with bigger races looming. Republicans are in store for greater loses.

Sands is in charge of elections, as leader-elect.

So, we really knocked on 10k doors. Then what? We ran back into our air-conditioned cars, with the absentee ballot requests still in the trunk?

I just have to disagree that this wasn't winnable and worth a sizable investment.

I hope we can rally in time for 2008.