BU Now » U.S. Senate primaries 2010 http://blogs.bu.edu/bunow News, information and research from Boston University Wed, 21 Sep 2011 18:14:24 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.4 Senate primary lessons http://blogs.bu.edu/bunow/2010/05/19/senate-primary-lessons/ http://blogs.bu.edu/bunow/2010/05/19/senate-primary-lessons/#comments Wed, 19 May 2010 15:54:33 +0000 Dick Taffe http://blogs.bu.edu/bunow/?p=5574 voting boothU.S. Senate primaries — with Republican-turned-Democrat Arlen Specter defeated in the Pennsylvania Democratic primary, Arkansas Democratic Senator Blanche Lincoln forced into a run-off, and a hand-picked GOP candidate beaten by Tea Party favored candidate Rand Paul in Kentucky — may indicate an anti-incumbent mood in the country.  But political science Professor Graham Wilson cautions that the Specter loss proves no national trend and the Democrats also saved the late John Murtha’s House seat in Pennsylvania where the Republicans seemed favored.

“However, Paul’s victory does show that within the Republican party the tea party movement is a real force, one that might result in the GOP being encumbered with far right conservative candidates in the November elections.  It’s like the reverse image of the McGovernites taking over the Democratic Party in the 1970s.”

Contact Graham Wilson, 617-353-2540, gkwilson@bu.edu

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