San Diego Maimon Schwarzschild

Closer to home, if your home is in San Diego, here is a good assessment of yesterday’s special election in northern San Diego to fill the Congressional seat of disgraced Republican Randy “Duke” Cunningham.  The Democrats had united behind a leftish candidate, Francine Busby.  The Republicans were united behind nobody, and Busby stood against fourteen (!) Republicans.  If Busby had won more than 50% of the votes, she would have been elected.  She was well financed by Democratic supporters around the country, and she was a MoveOn.org favourite.  It would have been a national story if she had carried this normally-Republican-leaning district, even against so fragmented a Republican oppostion.

But she didn’t.  She did just about as well as John Kerry had done in the district in 2004: just under 44% of the vote.  There will be a run-off election.  The Republican who got the most votes yesterday is former Congressman Brian Bilbray, and it is a safe prediction — based on yesterday’s vote — that he will be elected in the run-off.

The prospects for the Democrats to re-take the House in November (and to impeach George Bush?) were perhaps never bright.  They are a little less bright today.