Changes

In the Nov. 3, 2009, off-year elections, defeat was the fate of Democrats in [[New York City]], [[New Jersey]] and [[Virginia]]. Mayor [[Michael Bloomberg]], an independent, spent his way to a third term in New York City while Republican [[Bob McDonnell]] won in a landslide for governor of Virginia; in New Jersey Republican [[Christopher Christie]] ousted the incumbent Democrat [[Jon Corzine]] despite his millions and Obama's campaigning.

In the Nov. 3, 2009, off-year elections, defeat was the fate of Democrats in [[New York City]], [[New Jersey]] and [[Virginia]]. Mayor [[Michael Bloomberg]], an independent, spent his way to a third term in New York City while Republican [[Bob McDonnell]] won in a landslide for governor of Virginia; in New Jersey Republican [[Christopher Christie]] ousted the incumbent Democrat [[Jon Corzine]] despite his millions and Obama's campaigning.

Conservatives scored a major internal party victory in Oct. 2009 by forcing the Republican candidate [[Dede Scozzafava]] out of a House race in New York's 23rd district, for being too liberal. The Conservative Party candidate was defeated by the Democrat, however, opening up recriminations between GOP officials and conservatives on why the district was lost for the first time since 1992. Conservative activists zeroed in on the 2010 race for Florida's open Senate seat, in which the Republican party Senate campaign committee endorsed moderate Gov. [[Charlie Crist]] but the more conservative [[Marco Rubio]] mounted a successful challenge. "If I were Charlie Crist in Florida, what's happening in New York 23 would make me extremely nervous," GOP strategist Todd Harris said. "A lot of the establishment Republicans underestimated the grass-roots anger across the country about spending and the expansion of the federal government. The anger is boiling over now, but a lot of the seeds of discontent were planted over the last five to six years."<ref>Karl Vick and Philip Rucker, [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/31/AR2009103102219.html "In a war within GOP, the right wins a battle," ''Washington Post'' Nov. 1, 2009]</ref>

Conservatives scored a major internal party victory in Oct. 2009 by forcing the Republican candidate [[Dede Scozzafava]] out of a House race in New York's 23rd district, for being too liberal. The Conservative Party candidate was defeated by the Democrat, however, opening up recriminations between GOP officials and conservatives on why the district was lost for the first time since 1992. Conservative activists zeroed in on the 2010 race for Florida's open Senate seat, in which the Republican party Senate campaign committee endorsed moderate Gov. [[Charlie Crist]] but the more conservative [[Marco Rubio]] mounted a successful challenge. "If I were Charlie Crist in Florida, what's happening in New York 23 would make me extremely nervous," GOP strategist Todd Harris said. "A lot of the establishment Republicans underestimated the grass-roots anger across the country about spending and the expansion of the federal government. The anger is boiling over now, but a lot of the seeds of discontent were planted over the last five to six years."<ref>Karl Vick and Philip Rucker, [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/31/AR2009103102219.html "In a war within GOP, the right wins a battle," ''Washington Post'' Nov. 1, 2009]</ref>

===Ad campaigns===

===Ad campaigns===

Liberal icon [[Ted Kennedy]], the third longest-serving Senator in U.S. history, died in August 2009, marking the end of an era. During the [[2004 Presidential Election]] the Democratic super-majority in the state legislator blocked the right of [[Republican]] Governor [[Mitt Romney]] to appoint an interim senator had [[John Kerry]] been elected President. After changing the law to allow Governor [[Deval Patrick]], a [[Democrat]], the right to appoint a temporary replacement for Kennedy, he choose former Democratic National Committee chairman [[Paul Kirk]]. He did not seek a full term of his own, and a special election was held on January 19, 2010.  

Liberal icon [[Ted Kennedy]], the third longest-serving Senator in U.S. history, died in August 2009, marking the end of an era. During the [[2004 Presidential Election]] the Democratic super-majority in the state legislator blocked the right of [[Republican]] Governor [[Mitt Romney]] to appoint an interim senator had [[John Kerry]] been elected President. After changing the law to allow Governor [[Deval Patrick]], a [[Democrat]], the right to appoint a temporary replacement for Kennedy, he choose former Democratic National Committee chairman [[Paul Kirk]]. He did not seek a full term of his own, and a special election was held on January 19, 2010.  

State Attorney General [[Martha Coakley]] won the Democratic primary, defeating businessman Alan Khazei, Representative Mike Capuano, and Boston Celtics co-owner Stephen Pagliuca. Charismatic State Senator [[Scott Brown]] was the Republican nominee.<ref>Many high-profile Republicans declined to fight the odds, including former White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card, former Governor Mitt Romney, former Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey and former [[Red Sox]] pitcher [[Curt Schilling]], a conservative. See [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/22/AR2009092203804.html news]</ref>  

State Attorney General [[Martha Coakley]] won the Democratic primary, defeating businessman Alan Khazei, Representative Mike Capuano, and Boston Celtics co-owner Stephen Pagliuca. Charismatic State Senator [[Scott Brown]] was the Republican nominee.<ref>Many high-profile Republicans declined to fight the odds, including former White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card, former Governor Mitt Romney, former Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey and former [[Red Sox]] pitcher [[Curt Schilling]], a conservative. See [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/22/AR2009092203804.html news]</ref>  

[[File:Sbrown1.jpg|thumb|290px|right|a last minute appeal]]

[[File:Sbrown1.jpg|thumb|290px|right|a last minute appeal]]