It looks like a wipeout

The American political map is about to be redrawn—and in a massive way. Election results show a virtual wipe-out for the Republicans. Party insiders had seen this coming for weeks and entered the most intense period of the mid-term cycle with a sense of resignation and disaster. The reality was even worse than they feared.

Few Republicans, if any, really thought that Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas was in danger of losing his race for a fourth term in office. In reality, insiders hoped that Abbott’s strength would rescue Senate candidate Ken Paxton, who faced nothing less than a political ruin of his own making. At the end of the day, Abbott could not even rescue himself.

The wipe out was more expected in the House of Representatives, and as of last night it looked like Democratic control was inevitable, and the only question was the scale of the majority. As of now, the only question is the size of the Democratic majority. Get ready for Speaker Hakim Jecfries.

In the Senate, Democratic control now seems certain. The only question is the final tally of several votes and the margin of control the Democrats will possess. In any event, it is a Republican crash of epic proportions.

In one sense, the bad news came even earlier than many Republicans want to remember. In case after case, Republicans were already losing special elections and voter initiatives, starting even before controversies over President Trump’s tariffs and the war with Iran. The president tried to maintain a positive approach as he traveled the nation, but his events were more about himself than the Republican candidates he was supposedly there to support.

In the final analysis, midterm elections are always a referendum on the incumbent president. That truth has been stated over and over again, president after president. In truth, most presidents are weakened at this point in a second term. President Trump has courted and incited controversy all along—he virtually thrives on it, but this was not a winning strategy. Most Republican leaders seemed to sense that from the start. And yet, what happed last night—even with the partial results known now—went far beyond the worst nightmares of most Republicans.

It looks almost certain that James Tallarico will be the new senator from Texas and Adam Hamilton will head to the Senate from Kansas—two liberal Protestants who will now vote where conservative Republicans once held the seats. Just incredible. Darline Graham, whose lackluster campaign could not be saved by Trump, will lose a safe Republican Senate seat to a Democrat, from South Carolina no less.

The list goes on, but the hardest news of the night might be the apparent victory of Abdul El-Sayed, who as of late last night was leading in the Michigan Senate race. A candidate whose Anti-Semitism is clear, whose family has been tied to Islamic extremism, whose policies represent the far left, and who will be touted as the first Muslim member of the U.S. Senate, will likely head for Washington—even with all these factors well known, well documented, and seemingly irrelevant to Michigan voters.

From Ohio, leftist former Sen. Sherrod Brown heads back to the Senate, defeating an incumbent Republican. GOP candidates appeared doomed from New Hampshire to Nebraska an on from there.

It is still too early to know the results of votes on a myriad of social and moral issues, from transgender teenagers to abortion and a potential tax on billionaires in California. We should have a clearer picture by tonight—at least where the votes can be tabulated. In some cases, the voting policies of several states mean that some pressing questions may not be answered for weeks.

But, for now, the picture is clear enough. Republicans sowed the wind and now reap the whirlwind. The lessons will be hard, and many conservatives will try minimize the catastrophe. This is a disaster. Just consider Texas, where it looks like Republicans were simply routed in statewide votes. Remind yourself that it is close to impossible for a Republican presidential candidate to win without the giant block of Texas votes in the Electoral College. If Texas goes blue, so does the nation—and for the foreseeable future.

The stakes for Republicans are incredibly high. Just two years ago, some conservatives were boasting that the Democrats would never recover from the Trump remaking of the Republican Party. That confidence now looks pathetic. The full scale of the wipeout is not yet even clear and a full accounting of votes may be days away, or in some cases even more distant. The race for the future of the Republican Party begins this morning—you can count on that. In the meantime, get ready for the energetic revenge of the Democratic Party and its leftist wing.

Many issues of central to concern to Christian voters are now at grave risk. Anyone who assures you otherwise is not being honest. We face a massive challenge ahead. This is not a time for the faint of heart or those who fear big political battles ahead. We are about to face a daunting new world and an ominous political reality. The battles will line up fast and the challenges will come with a vengeance.