HOFFMAN CLOSING ON OWENS  —  Democrat ahead of Conservative by 2,512 votes  —  Democrat Bill Owens is leading in the 23rd Congressional District race.  —  The Plattsburgh attorney has 50,884 votes compared to Conservative Doug Hoffman, a Lake Placid CPA, with 47,166 votes.

The GOP elite's $1 million object lesson — and the message of NY-23  —  Conservatives owe NY-23 candidate Doug Hoffman immeasurable gratitude.  He overcame impossible odds (single digits just a month ago) to come within two points of defeating Democrat Bill Owens.  Hoffman had zero name recognition.

The Obama magic has faded  —  All politics is local, they say, and Tuesday's off-off-year elections certainly had their local angles.  Jon Corzine has been a terrible governor even by the undemanding standards of terribly governed New Jersey.  Creigh Deeds, though he looked …

NY-23: Watertown Mayor: 'It's Over'  —  SARANAC LAKE, N.Y. - I caught Watertown, N.Y., Mayor Jeff Graham, who endorsed NY-23 Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman this weekend, looking very glum at Hoffman's election party.  I asked him what happened in Jefferson County, where Watertown is located …

Conservative Loses Upstate House Race in Blow to Right  —  SARANAC LAKE, N.Y. — Democrats won a special election in New York State's northernmost Congressional district Tuesday, a setback for national conservatives who heavily promoted a third candidate in what became an intense debate over the direction of the Republican Party.

Gubernatorial contests serve as warning to Democrats  —  Off-year elections can be notoriously unreliable as predictors of the future, but as a window on how the political landscape may have changed in the year since President Obama won the White House, Tuesday's Republican victories in Virginia …

GOP sweeps gov races; Dem wins N.Y.  —  Republican gubernatorial candidates racked up major wins for the GOP in Virginia and New Jersey Tuesday night as Democrats scored a single victory in a special congressional election in upstate New York.  —  Former Virginia Attorney General Bob McDonnell …

Steele: Election Returns Show ‘Transcendent’ GOP  —  GOP Chairman Steele hails election results, says GOP ‘found its voice again’  —  An ebullient Republican Party Chairman Michael Steele asserted Wednesday that GOP victories in governors' races in New Jersey and Virginia demonstrate “a transcendent party” on the move again.

What Happened and Why?  —  The outcome of all seven contests that we were tracking tonight appears settled, or very nearly so:  —  Virginia Governor: Republican Bob McDonnell wins by 17 points, toward the upper end of the range predicted by the pollsters, although not to anybody's great surprise.

Why I'm running for Senate  —  Our most pressing problems today are too few jobs for Americans and too much spending in Washington.  —  CANDIDATE FOR U.S. SENATE FROM CALIFORNIA  —  Recommend  —  Admittedly, I have not always been engaged in the electoral process, and I should have been.