2013's election night results are a mixed bag of surprises and predictable outcomes.
Governor's Races - Chris Christie sailed to a predictable win (60% - 35.5%) over Barbara Buono in New Jersey, thanks to Democrats' abandonment of Buono. In Virginia, Terry McAuliffe edged out Ken Cuccinelli by a much smaller margin than had been predicted -- 48%-45.5%. In the Virginia Lieutenant Governor's race, Democrat Ralph Northam trounced E.W. Jackson with an 11 point margin.
Virginia Legislature - Democrats picked up two Senate seats in Virginia and the majority along with it, though the House of Delegates remains firmly in the hands of a Republican supermajority.
Virginia Attorney General - This one will head for a recount, overseen by none other than losing gubernatorial candidate Ken Cuccinelli. As of 2:30 AM EST, Democrat Mark Herring leads by about 600 votes with all but four precincts reporting. Out of those four precincts, two are deep red and two are deep blue.
Tea Party vs. US Chamber Machine, Alabama edition - US Chamber-backed candidate Bradley Byrne sent tea party choice Dean Young packing, leaving Byrne as the GOP choice for AL-1 special election next month to fill Alison Bonner's seat. It's Alabama, so the actual election will just be a formality. The real race was to see whether the hardcore 'never say die' conservative would win over the more mainstream but no less conservative candidate.
Mayoral Races - Bill DeBlasio is the new mayor of New York City, winning his race by a landslide -- 73% to 24%. His populist message obviously resonated with New Yorkers enough for them to elect their first Democratic mayor in 20 years. In Houston, Annise Parker was re-elected, and in Seattle, Democrat Ed Murray was elected. Both candidates are openly gay. In Boston, Democrat Marty Walsh defeated John Connolly to become Boston's new mayor, and once again, the city voted for the populist progressive candidate over the corporate Democrat.
Minimum Wage - It was a good night for minimum wage laws. New Jersey voters approved an increase in the minimum wage to $8.25 per hour with scheduled cost of living increases going forward. In Washington State, a ballot proposition to raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour for workers at Sea-Tac airport had an early lead, but final results might not be known until Friday due to the mail-in rules for voting in that state.
Marijuana - Portland, Maine and three cities in Michigan all voted to legalize pot and Colorado voted to tax it.
Education - In Bridgeport, CT, the school board majority now belongs to the Working Families Party, which is a heavy blow to the school deformers who have been working so hard to bust unions and privatize schools there. In Colorado, voters rejected a ballot measure which would have raised taxes on the wealthy in order to fund schools.
GMO Food Labeling - Washington state took a run at a similar measure to the one on California's ballot in 2012, with the same result. It went down in defeat by a wide margin after millions were spent to buy that defeat.
What other results caught your eye?
