McConnell, Grimes win primaries, outline fall campaign messages

[alp227]

Source: Lexington Herald-Leader

U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes emerged victorious from their respective primaries Tuesday night, setting up a bruising battle this fall as Grimes tries to deny McConnell a sixth term.

McConnell handily dispatched Louisville businessman Matt Bevin, who won about 36 percent of the Republican vote. Grimes won about 76 percent of the vote over three Democrats who did not raise or spend money on their campaigns.

The primary winners used their victory speeches to outline the cases they will take to Kentuckians beginning Wednesday, as Grimes vies to become the state's first female senator and McConnell hopes to claim the title of majority leader in the Senate.

U.S. Sen. Rand Paul boiled down McConnell's central message in a video address to supporters gathered at McConnell's victory party in Louisville: "Obama needs Alison Grimes. Kentucky needs Mitch McConnell."

Read more: http://www.kentucky.com/2014/05/20/3251158/mitch-mcconnell-holds-off-matt.html

[sakabatou]

1. I hope Grimes wins

[Comrade Grumpy]

2. I think we could see two new women Democrat senators holding former GOP seats come November.

Grimes in Kentucky.

And Nunn in Georgia.

The Republicans are not going to take back the Senate.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

3. How much I hope you're right! n/t

[Rhinodawg]

5. One can only hope.

Nunn has a free 8 weeks to eviscerate the repub party.

[liberal N proud]

6. How good it would feel to kick the turtle out of Washington

[davidpdx]

7. That would be nice

I'm convinced we'll need to take one of the two at least to hold the Senate. They are both important races.

[pampango]

8. 309,207 for Grimes (405,000 total D) vs. 213,881 for McConnell (354,000 total R)

Looks like we have a good shot though there is a long way to go.

Nunn in Georgia outpolled the repub winner 242,025 to 184,459, but there were 603,000 total repub votes and only 321,000 Democratic voters. Hopefully, much of the repub turnout was due to the number of candidates and a more 'competitive' (all right-wing lunatics) race.

I hope you are right about both Kentucky and Georgia, as well as the Senate overall.

[IronLionZion]

9. I sure hope so

since Dems will lose at least 3: South Dakota, West Virginia, and Montana. With very tough re-election battles in about 4 other conservative states.

[mwyn8]

4. Plus Wendy Davis in Texas

I watched the Rachel Maddow show & she showed excerpts from both candidates. Grimes was great. She refused to let McConnell pigeon hole her as an Obama surrogate. Man, if you get a chance listen to it. I think she's got this.

[1StrongBlackMan]

10. I saw part of her Victory speach this morning on Morning Joe ...

loved it ... especially the part about, "PBO is not on the Kentucky ballot ... there is nothing about this election that will change who is in the whitehouse; but we can change who is in the Senate ... No, McConnell. This election is about just you and me ..."

But I wish that last part had been delivered, "No, McConnell. This election is about just you and me ... UNLESS BEVIN STILL WANTS TO MOUNT A THIRD PARTY RUN!"

While Grimes has a decent chance at unseating McConnell, I wanted Bevin to win, as a majority of McConnell voter polled as saying that they would not vote for Bevin in the general election, if he had won the primary; but only a large plurality of Bevin voters had McConnell as they second choice ... and it appears that independents preferred McConnell over Bevin, with a majority of them saying they would not vote for Bevin had he won the primary.