Let’s get real. The Dem candidate received 53% of the vote. The other 47% loses regardless of how many candidates there are.
I am not buying that.
(1) You had two candidates basically running against and attacking the republican candidate — one being a former republican.
(2) If it was so expected as you state, some discouraged voters may have just stayed home.
(3) A third candidate often takes focus off the two candidates that have the greatest chance to win. The third candidate was a distraction that I am sure the democrat appreciated.
LOL. You don't need no stinkin' facts. I provided you with the demographics of the 33rd District. A Dem held the seat until he was elected AG, which caused the vacancy. The district went overwhelmingly for Obama. Herring won the district in 2011 by essentially the same margin as Wexton did in 2014.
(1) You had two candidates basically running against and attacking the republican candidate — one being a former republican.
The Rep only received 37% of the vote and Sarvis almost 10%. Do the math. 53% of the electorate voted for Wexton.
(2) If it was so expected as you state, some discouraged voters may have just stayed home.
Most voters stayed home. It was a special election. Turnout was about 20%. We also had a major snowstorm. The candidate who wins usually does the best job of turning out the vote. In NoVA, the Dems have the best GOTV machine. And they also happen to have the majority of the voters. It is a hard combination to beat.
(3) A third candidate often takes focus off the two candidates that have the greatest chance to win. The third candidate was a distraction that I am sure the democrat appreciated.
The Democrats didn't need a distraction to win. What you seem to be missing is that NoVA is predominantly Dem. In the VA suburbs around DC, McAwful won 62% to 33% over Cuccinelli. One third of the voters live in NoVA. The Dems build up huge margins in NoVA and the cities where many of the blacks live (20% of the state electorate) and it is now impossible for the Reps to get enough votes in the rest of the state to overcome that cushion.
NoVA is the fastest growing region of the state. It is also the wealthiest. It is becoming like Philadelphia or Detroit when it comes to dominating statewide election results. We are being outnumbered hence the shift of VA to a blue state. I don't see anyway a Rep wins VA in a Presidential race, where turnout is the highest. I have lived in VA for 34 years. The state has changed dramatically primarily due to demographics.