Democrats saw a series of welcome victories across Ohio, Virginia, and Kentucky last week as voters in statewide elections delivered the GOP key defeats chiefly tied to the issue of abortion rights.
Left-leaning activists in Virginia and Ohio in particular appeared energised by their victories, a much-needed boost to their confidence and optimism after heartbreaking defeats for the party in 2022 and 2021. Ohioans saw the election of author and Trump convert JD Vance to the US Senate, while Virginians witnessed the downfall of Terry McAuliffe, their state’s former governor, as he sought to defeat Republican Glenn Youngkin. Both were considered blows to Joe Biden for different reasons — in Virginia, Mr McAuliffe ran aligned with Mr Biden and was beaten soundly just months into the latter’s presidency, and in Ohio the president lost a much-needed opportunity to pick up a vote for his agenda in the US Senate.
