Obama hit by Republican victories

REPUBLICANS won two key state elections, dealing a stinging blow to President Barack Obama and his Democrats 12 months after they swept to power.

Obama’s favoured candidates lost battles for the governorships of New Jersey and Virginia in Tuesday’s elections but gained a vacant congressional seat in a strongly Republican district of upstate New York that amounted to scant compensation for the president.

Republicans Chris Christie in New Jersey and Virginia’s Bob McDonnell unseated Democrats.

“The Republican Party’s overwhelming victory in Virginia is a blow to President Obama and the Democrat Party,” Republican National Committee (RNC) chairman Michael Steele said. “It sends a clear signal that voters have had enough of the president’s liberal agenda.”

Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs played down the wider significance of the three off-year election races.

“I don’t think the president is looking at these and believes that they say anything about our future legislative efforts or our future political efforts,” Gibbs said.

Exit polls conducted by television networks tilted in favour of his argument, with 55% of Virginia voters and 60% of New Jersey voters saying Obama did not factor into their decision.

But the devastating losses are serious wake-up call for the Democrats ahead of crucial mid-term congressional elections next year.

In New Jersey, Christie pulled off an upset victory over Jon Corzine in the heavily Democratic state, with a 49-45% margin according to preliminary results.

McDonnell defeated Creigh Deeds by 59-41% in Virginia, with almost all precincts reporting.

The New Jersey loss was likely harsher for Obama than Virginia, who campaigned heavily for Corzine in the state long dominated by the Democratic Party.

But Democrats won a consolation prize of sorts with a surprise victory in the New York special election after a bitter feud among conservatives.

Preliminary results gave Democrat Bill Owens 49% to 45% for his main challenger Doug Hoffman, who ran on the tiny Conservative Party ballot but received high-profile backing, including from Sarah Palin.

Ahead of the 2010 mid- terms and with Obama bogged down in confrontations on the economy, healthcare reform and the Afghanistan war, the off- year races had greater clout.

The Republican Governors Association quickly congratulated McDonnell in Virginia, saying his victory gave the party “tremendous momentum heading into 2010”.

If the races showed that Obama’s Democraticmachine is not invincible, they also bared rifts in the Republican Party. Hoffman’s storming run made him a standard bearer for the wing of the RepublicanParty organising nationwide “tea party” protests against Obama.

Other Republicans argued for a more centrist stand aimed at attracting independent voters. The officialRepublican candidate, Dede Scozzafava, dropped out of the race over the weekend and endorsed Owens over Hoffman.

Voters also chose mayors in major cities including New York, Atlanta, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Houston and Seattle.

New York’s mayor, media tycoon Michael Bloomberg, won a surprisingly tight contest for reelection against Democratic challenger Bill Thompson by 51% to 46%.