After sweeping victories in Virginia, New York, and elsewhere, Republicans have reclaimed the driver’s seat in electoral politics. The Democrats are running scared. The analysts on MSNBC and CNN are tearing their hair out, claiming the victories are due to white supremacy and not parental rights over what schools teach their children. The winning Republicans probably think the hard part is over. They won. They would be wrong.
Winning the seat may seem like the hard part, but as we’ve seen from President Joe Biden and the Democratic majorities in the House and Senate, governing is far more difficult. Biden came into office in January with a 56% approval rating and has gone downhill ever since. In August, amid the Afghanistan pullout debacle, his disapproval numbers overtook his approvals. His approval is now at an abysmally low 40%. At this point in 2009, Obama had 51.7% approval, and in 2010, he witnessed Republicans gain 60 seats in the House.
Luckily for the Republicans who won, they gain popularity when they keep their promises, as opposed to the Democrats, who lose when they enact the policies they run on. Democrats run on fantasy, like the end of fossil fuels. But when Biden kills the Keystone pipeline and shuts down the oil rigs, gas prices spike. Fantasy and reality do not mix well. Republicans run on reality, but they have a hard time enacting it.
To continue this course, Virginia Gov.-elect Glenn Youngkin must take a page from the book of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. DeSantis, like President Donald Trump before him, has come to realize the obvious truth of U.S. politics: The Republicans are not fighting against the Democrats. They are fighting against the media. The media care about things the public doesn’t, such as climate change and claims of systemic racism. The public cares about taxes, crime, and education. This is what Youngkin and Republicans in New York, such as Long Island and Buffalo, ran on. They cannot shift their focus to appease media that despise them.
To keep Virginia from going back to becoming a deep blue state, Youngkin must deliver on his promises. School choice and banning critical race theory are a great start, but Virginians need to see their government is getting out of their way. COVID-19 cases in Virginia are likely to spike when it gets cold outside like they did last year. Youngkin cannot shut down the economy or enact mandates like a blue state would. Encourage people to vaccinate and take precautions, but don’t do it under the threat of the government gun.
The same is true for the New York suburbs. Nassau County and Buffalo are two high-population centers in New York that Republicans just won. Popular governance, such as lowering the property tax burdens and keeping the streets safe, will pay dividends next year. In 2022, the governor’s seat is up for grabs. With the resignation of Andrew Cuomo and the restrictive COVID policies of now-Gov. Kathy Hochul, Republicans have a major opportunity to take the state back.
It would not be an easy road for the New York GOP. Registered Democratic voters in New York City alone outnumber registered Republicans statewide. But suppose the victors in Nassau and Buffalo show that Republican governance works. In that case, those registered Republicans will be energized, the independents will rally, and many Democrats will flip or stay home.
So the message to every Republican in the country should be one of hope. Republicans can win in blue states. To keep up that momentum, they have to govern like they campaign: on promises of economic and social freedom the Democrats have resisted for years.
Moshe Hill (@HillWithView) is a political columnist and senior fellow at Amariah, an America First Zionist organization. He has a weekly column in the Queens Jewish Link and can be followed on his blog and Facebook.
