All Posts

  • The 5/10 Primary Watchlist: Nebraska and West Virginia

    Introduction This week’s edition of Watchlist brings us to two lesser-populated states with strongly Republican leanings: Nebraska and West Virginia. Neither one uses runoffs, so candidates will only need pluralities of the vote to secure their nominations. Last week’s contests in Ohio and Indiana reignited this year’s primary season after a month-long drought. To the joy… Read more

  • 5/3 Primary Roundup

    Senate After months of anxious waiting, the Republican Senate primary is finally over. Trump-endorsed venture capitalist J.D. Vance finished first with 32.2% of the vote, performing well in rural Ohio and the post-industrial working class Mahoning Valley. Josh Mandel came in second with 23.9%, and was generally the second choice of much of the Vance… Read more

  • The 5/3 Primary Watchlist: Ohio and Indiana

    Introduction For this week’s edition of Watchlist, we return from a two-month primary dry spell and turn our attention to two Rust Belt states whose primaries will resume the 2022 primary election season. Indiana and Ohio voters will head to the polls on May 3rd to nominate their slates of candidates for November. Unlike Texas,… Read more

  • House Updates: Florida

    Background The latest redistricting cycle in the Sunshine State was like a wild carnival ride the whole way through. From the beginning, outside observers expected the Republican-run state government to press its advantage by crafting an effective gerrymander. But the legislature’s will to draw a 17 or 18 seat GOP map and call it a… Read more

  • Temperature Check: Colorado

    The Colorado Democratic and Republican Parties have now concluded the majority of their pre-primary activities, including county and district caucuses and assemblies. Democrats are looking to extend their dominance in the formerly purple Centennial State, while Republicans are trying to win back some ground. Split Ticket examines the races and makes some early predictions below.… Read more

  • Independents Hold The Key To Any Biden Rebound

    One of the most heavily debated topics in politics is just what, exactly, is the cause behind Joe Biden’s dismal approval ratings. It isn’t clear that his approvals should be mired in the low-40s, either, if history is to serve as any indicator; in fact, a recent Gallup poll found that at this point in… Read more

  • World Report: France – Round 2 & Extras

    Introduction This is the third edition of Split Ticket’s World Report, an article series devoted to covering foreign elections. Today’s edition will focus on France, where the 2nd round of the country’s closely-watched presidential contest will come to an end amid a backdrop of economic uncertainty and a burgeoning Russian threat. The race is a rematch… Read more

  • CA-26, VA-10 & An Expanding GOP Battleground

    Introduction History tells us that the President’s party almost always loses ground in midterm cycles. The size of congressional losses varies depending on just how unpopular a sitting President is, but gains for the party out of power generally increase as presidential approval falls. Abrupt changes in political direction associated with midterms have an outsized… Read more

  • Temperature Check: Pennsylvania

    Perhaps no slate of elections will be as closely watched in 2022 as the ones in Pennsylvania. With a Senate seat and the governor’s mansion both up for grabs and with just over a month to go until the state’s primary elections, Split Ticket takes a look at the Keystone State’s primaries for both races.… Read more

  • TX-34 Special: High GOP Hopes

    Introduction What is South Texas? The answer to that question varies from person to person, but most political observers generally agree that a few basic categories distinguish the region from the rest of the state. Before any discussion of the 34th district special election can be had, it is important to understand these unique area… Read more

  • Quantifying Conservatism

    When Brian Kemp launched his 2018 campaign for governor, his first ad caught everyone’s eye. With promises to “blow up” government spending, a massive truck that he claimed would be used to “round up criminal illegals and take ’em home”, and a gun pointed at his daughter’s boyfriend that “no one [was] taking away”, Kemp’s… Read more

  • World Report: France & Mexico

    Introduction This is the second edition of Split Ticket’s World Report, an article series devoted to covering foreign elections. Today’s edition will focus on the nations of France and Mexico, with the lion’s share of attention concentrated on the hotly-contested presidential race in the former. The returns received after this evening’s 1st round will determine which… Read more