Editorial: Cunningham's behavior - From great hope to weak link
Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2020 -- Cal Cunningham was, through much of the election, a cornerstone of Democrats hope to wrest control of U.S. Senate from the Republicans. As the final votes are being counted in North Carolina and Georgia, it appears likely that Cunningham is the weak link in that quest. Through mid-October Cunningham reported raising more than $46.8 million and spending $45.9 million. His behavior let down those wanted a change in the Senate and short-changed his donors. Who'd blame them for demanding their money back.
Posted — UpdatedWhy is that number of votes for third-party candidates relevant? Aren’t there third-party candidates in other statewide races?
There are. But in those races – such as president and governor – the votes for those other-party candidates was around 79,300 – just a third – of those in the Senate race. It doesn’t take a soothsayer to conclude that there were thousands of voters who didn’t want to vote for Tillis or for Cunningham. They looked elsewhere and it came at Cunningham’s cost.
By contrast, Tillis was open and available – making appearances with voters, conducting interviews with news organizations and issuing a wave of anti-Cunningham television ads and direct-mail appeals.
While there may be enough votes that remain uncounted in the state to shift the status of the race, Cunningham has a very steep deficit to conquer.
Cunningham was, through much of the election, a cornerstone of Democrats hope to wrest control of U.S. Senate from the Republicans. As the final votes are being counted in North Carolina and Georgia, it appears likely that Cunningham is the weak link in that quest.
His behavior let down those wanted a change in the Senate and short-changed his donors. Who’d blame them for demanding their money back.
Copyright 2024 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.