Independant's Day

Much ado is being made of the gubernatorial election results today in Virginia and New Jersey, as well as the congressional contest in upstate New York. Inside-the-beltway pundits and spinmeisters have analyzed the significance of these races and results ad nauseum. The cable news networks provided coverage of these relatively small, off-year, local elections as if it was general election night. All overdone to the point where I would have welcomed several hours of "balloon boy" coverage or a slow-motion police chase.

What may prove to be the important take-away, is that there are now more Independant voters than either registered Democrats or Republicans. The results in 2008, and again on this morning-after, may be more indicative of our collective disenchantment with either party and a desire to remove entrenched incumbents, than it is a referendum on Obama or a surging conservative movement.

There exists a disturbingly small number of eligible voters who actually make their way to the polling places. However, it appears that those who do vote may now be more engaged and more aware than ever. I view the events of yesterday with a mixture of hope and skepticism. Hope in the American electorate and skepticism about whether the "yes we can" enthusiasm was left at the end of the campaign trail.