In 2012 campaigns, spoilers from the Tea Party worry GOP
The Democrats’ upset victory in New York’s special election Tuesday shows that Tea Party candidates could prevent Republicans from winning the White House and Senate, GOP senators say.
Political analysts interpret Kathy Hochul’s (D) surprise win was a flashing red signal that Medicare reforms that passed in Rep. Paul Ryan’s (R) House budget in March could cripple the GOP in the 2012 election.
Some Republican senators, however, view the spoiler role Tea Party candidate Jack Davis played in that race with more alarm.
Tea Party activists say Davis was an “impostor candidate,” because he ran for office several times as a Democrat before claiming the Tea Party mantle. He still managed to win 8 percent of the vote, and Republicans claim he deprived Jane Corwin, the GOP nominee, of the win.
For Republican senators, it’s conjured the memory of H. Ross Perot splitting center-right voters in 1992 and 1996, ensuring the election and reelection of former President Clinton.