Shellackings Past and Present

Julia Shaw / November 22, 2010

Three weeks ago, Democrats took what President Obama dubbed a “shellacking” at the polls: Republicans picked up 62 seats in the House, enough to gain a majority, and six in the Senate. The next day, the post-election analysis and finger-pointing began. Defeated Democrats blamed the President. Defeated Republicans blamed the media and the Washington establishment. The President (whose usual reaction is to blame Bush) blamed the American people’s anxiety over not feeling the change he had promised. All blame games aside, the real question remains unanswered: what did the 2010 election mean?

To gain some perspective, we should look to previous major midterm Republican sweeps: 1994 (54 House: 9 Senate), 1946 (55 House: 13 Senate) and 1938 (81 House: 6 Senate). (more…)