# Down Goes Eric Cantor **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [June 11, 2014, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516 "2014-06-11T00:05:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/81 "2014-06-11T04:07:16Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Actually, Brat spent $200,000 and Cantor spent $5,000,000. /nitpick I was wrong; those numbers reflect total dollars raised, not spent. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/82 "2014-06-11T04:16:27Z")
Is no one else enjoying having a candidate for Congress (and, basically the next Congressman) named Brat? I am. ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/83 "2014-06-11T04:19:04Z")
> [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > This may be a huge victory for the Tea Party, but it is bad news nationally for Republicans. Here in Colorado, both Gov. John Hickenlooper and Sen. Mark Udall were vulnerable, but if Republicans have to stay away from immigration reform, which they will, it means both will be reelected. Tom Tancredo may even win the Republican Governor’s primary, being the anti-immigration candidate, and the vast majority of Coloradoans _hate_ him. He’s only liked by right-wing radio hosts and listeners. Didn’t Hickenlooper beat the crap out of Tancredo the last time around? ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/84 "2014-06-11T04:20:21Z")
Apparently Trammell’s website consists of nothing but requests for money. It would be nice if his positions were listed there. > **[Chip in!](https://secure.actblue.com/contribute/page/jacktrammell)** > > Show your support with a contribution. ---
**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/85 "2014-06-11T04:21:45Z")
Holy shit. This was not a result I expected as a VirginIan. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/86 "2014-06-11T04:22:06Z")
> [@EndlessEntropy](#): > > Anyone remember Christine O’Donnell losing to Chris Coons? It’s interesting because the election was pretty similar- TP backed O’Donnell defeated the more liberal incumbent republican then lost the general election to the democrats. I wonder if this will have the same ending. Probably not. The opponent is another Randolph-Macon College employee who runs their disability services division. He’s currently working on a novel about a vampire, according to his Amazon page. The Dems didn’t exactly bring their A list to this race. [Eric Cantor Loses GOP Primary. Wait, What!? – Mother Jones](http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2014/06/eric-cantor-dave-brat-what-happened) ---
**Author:** ![Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omg_a_Black_Conservative)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/87 "2014-06-11T04:22:25Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > We haven’t gotten the \*\*adaher \*\*spin on it yet. Oooh, this should be good… I’m not him but… Cantor sucks. Glad he lost. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/88 "2014-06-11T04:26:20Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > Didn’t Hickenlooper beat the crap out of Tancredo the last time around? Yep, but Tancredo is running again. He ran as a third party candidate because the R’s nominated a moron. He lost by 15 points, but even if he got all the votes cast for the R candidate, he still would have lost by 5%. ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/89 "2014-06-11T04:30:40Z")
> [@Captain\_Amazing](#): > > They can’t be on the ballot as an independent. They can run as a write in candidate. The law in question: Thanks for the clarification. That’s even better. I hope his pride drives him to try this, as I doubt he can win as a write-in when there’s already a hard-Right candidate on the ballot. He’ll probably draw a few percent, but even if he gets a lot of write-in votes, the two Right candidates will cannibalize each other and make a democratic win more likely. Hope the “tomato-can” democrat is a good man, and I hope he gets some cash support now that the race has changed. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/90 "2014-06-11T04:35:16Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > Is no one else enjoying having a candidate for Congress (and, basically the next Congressman) named Brat? I am. A few years back, Kansans elected a Moran to the senate. We were driving through Kansas that summer, I remember seeing all the _MORAN_ signs and thinking, yeah, pftc. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/91 "2014-06-11T04:44:52Z")
[here is a blog that has some fairly detailed info about Trammel and Brat](http://bonjukianpatten.com/2014/06/11/hey-virginia-vote-for-jack-trammell-cause-no-one-likes-a-brat/). Including Brat sporting a really nauseating grin. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/92 "2014-06-11T04:46:36Z")
Boehner is retiring, Cantor was heir apparent. Who moves up, and what do they stand for? ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/93 "2014-06-11T05:02:17Z")
> [@Measure\_for\_Measure](#): > > Probably not. The opponent is another Randolph-Macon College employee who runs their disability services division. He’s currently working on a novel about a vampire, according to his Amazon page. The Dems didn’t exactly bring their A list to this race. [Eric Cantor Loses GOP Primary. Wait, What!? – Mother Jones](http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2014/06/eric-cantor-dave-brat-what-happened) Hehe, reminds me of the last house race in my Michigan district, as I posted at the time… > [@](#): > > [http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epo](http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epo)…\_taj-3332.html > > > [@](#): > > > > The 11th then experienced one of the strangest sequences of events in electoral history. McCotter embarked upon a quixotic run for the presidency, which ended before the first primary votes were cast. It looked as though he would simply return to Washington, but he failed to submit enough signatures to qualify for the ballot. > > > > That left the GOP with reindeer farmer Kerry Bentivolio as its nominee. The libertarian Bentivolio is an odd fit for the district, to say the least. But Democrats were caught flat-footed by McCotter’s failure as well, and their nominee, Syed Taj, is less than impressive as well. This race is a mess, and it is probably only the GOP tilt of the district that is saving the GOP here. ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/94 "2014-06-11T05:10:13Z")
> [@DigitalC](#): > > That just makes it all the more hilarious. Specially with the tea partiers celebrating like they just got voted prom queen when it was really just a joke by the popular kids. I don’t know how many Democrats did vote in the Republican primary but I doubt they were the only ones. And yes, Ben Jones, of The Dukes of Hazzard fame really did urge Dems to do just that. Here’s an article on the subject. [http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/5463196](http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/5463196) I should note that Ben Jones isn’t just a former actor. He was formerly a Congressman from Georgia and ran against Cantor in 2002. ---
**Author:** ![BDBoop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5e9695/32.png) [@BDBoop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BDBoop)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/95 "2014-06-11T05:22:59Z")
Cantor’s gotta be in shock. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/96 "2014-06-11T05:37:14Z")
Brat’s selling point was that Cantor wasn’t Conservative enough, the country lacks moral fiber (code talk about the gay marriage thingy going on), even evoked Ronald Reagan when interviewed by Hannity. You know the line, the same old Tea Party bullshit. For this the district losses a seasoned member of Congress who probably brought home a lot of pork and bacon to his constituents. [This should heat things up.](http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-chaos-at-cantor-headquarters-20140610,0,6882488.story) ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/97 "2014-06-11T06:11:56Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > I have family from that district. They’re Democrats but they voted in the Republican Party to support Brat. They were, along with other Democrats encouraged to do this by Ben Jones(AKA Cooter from the Dukes of Hazzard). I’m an Independent but voted for this [wing nut](http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/govbeat/wp/2014/05/19/republicans-worry-over-california-governors-race/) just to throw some sand into the gears. I was actually sorry that he lost. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/98 "2014-06-11T07:11:10Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > If Democrats did cross over, his pollster is still an idiot for not accounting for that. > > If Democrats can legally vote in the election, then the polls have to include Democrats. You of course weight the poll depending on what you expect turnout to look like, but the raw numbers should still be showing you something unusual, and you’d want to warn your candidate about that if you’re seeing it. If he didn’t say it before, he’s saying it now: > [@](#): > > Cantor’s polling expert, John McLaughlin, whose last survey showed the incumbent comfortably ahead, blamed the loss on Virginia Democrats. Since the state doesn’t register voters by party, it’s legal for partisans to cast ballots in another party’s primary. > > More than 65,000 votes were cast in Cantor’s race, an increase from the 46,300 cast in the 2012 primary that he won with 79 percent of the vote. > > “To lose by this margin and with this kind of turnout, Democrats had to be playing games,” McLaughlin said in an interview. “I guarantee these voters were not on our lists.” Bloomberg Businessweek: [Cantor’s Loss Shocks Republicans](http://www.businessweek.com/news/2014-06-11/cantor-loss-shocks-republicans-dims-immigration-changes#p2) ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/99 "2014-06-11T08:08:20Z")
[Well this may explain a lot.](http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/meet-jack-trammell-the-democrat-who-will-face-david-brat-the-man-who-beat-eric-cantor/2014/06/10/df00f972-f10a-11e3-914c-1fbd0614e2d4_story.html) “John Kent Trammell, 50, assumed the mantle of Democratic nominee Monday only after being nominated by a party committee. No candidates had entered the party’s primary.”. So there was no Democratic primary, only a Republican primary where a voter with any political affiliation could vote? Am I reading this correctly? ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 8:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516/100 "2014-06-11T08:49:11Z")
I’m pretty skeptical there’s enough dems out there voting strategically to cause a 44 point shift in the outcome. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/down-goes-eric-cantor/690516.md?page=6)