An unpopular president who ran as a centrist, but veered too far to the left politically. A sense that Democrats, too, have gone too far left and lost their way. Growing concerns about the state of the economy, worries about immigration, and an uptick in crime. And waiting to pounce is an animated Republican Party moving further to the right looking to capitalize on the missteps of Democrats.
While that all rings true today, it was also true in the fall of 1994, the last time that an incumbent New York state Democratic governor was last defeated at the polls. Nationally that year, the GOP also swept control of the House and Senate – giving them control of the House for the first time since 1954, something that looks increasingly possible again this fall.
History does indeed repeat itself and the political winds are blowing in the same direction today. Even in deep blue parts of the state, the most recent wave of opinion research polls are showing a bad – and worsening – political climate for Democrats.
