Illinois Repub party in disarray

[NNN0LHI]

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IL_REPUBLICAN_TROUBLES_ILOL-?SITE=ILKAN&SECTION=STATE&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Election leaves Illinois Republicans wondering how to rebuild

By CHRISTOPHER WILLS
Associated Press Writer

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) -- Illinois Republicans emerged from Tuesday's election with no clear leaders, no clear message and no clear lessons.

The only certainty, insiders say, is that major changes are needed before the party can compete on a statewide level.

"The whole house has burned down. It's not just that a gutter has fallen off or a brick is loose. What you're facing here is a reconstruction project from the ground up," said GOP political consultant Glenn Hodas.

[Jackpine Radical]

1. Aw, shit. Why don't they just reconstitute themselves

as Greens?

[madrchsod]

2. 10% of the vote went to the green candidate

the majority of the people who backed the candidate made over 100,000....

[Nite Owl]

3. They are quite the mess

here in NY too. Total disarray. No leadership and they could barely get candidates to run for major offices this round. The only thing the dems didn't get here was the state Senate and they got that by 3 seats.

[AlCzervik]

4. i would have thought afdter the 04 cycle they would have regrouped

and try to fix their party. Glad to see they haven't

[madrchsod]

5. the only people they have left are hard core right wingers

and i doubt the republicans can win any state wide election with that kind of candidate.

[KharmaTrain]

6. This Former All Red Area Is All Blue Now

I woke up on Wednesday with a dream come true...there was not one single elected Repugnican in my area. From Governor down the ticket to the State Senate and House, the voters in my area and state swept the last vestiges of this immoral and corrupt party from my life...at least for the next two years.

Most notable was the State Rep who had been in office for nearly 30 years and controlled the local Repugnican machine. The party splintering and its pull to the right led many moderates to leave the party and were recruited by the state Democratic party...that recruiting paid big last Tuesday as this out-of-touch hack was tossed. And in true GOOP style, even though he lost 55-45% still refuses to concede.

This is a drastic change from 10 years ago when the Repugnicans had an iron grip on this area...easily winning 60% or more of the vote every election. The Illinois GOOP is the picture of the National party in the years to come. It got mucked in its own corruption along with an ideological split that has more Repugnicans fighting with each other than they are with Democrats.

[terrya]

7. "Disarray" is an understatement.

2 years ago, the Republicans in this state actually had to beg right wing nutjob Alan Keyes to run against Barack Obama. You saw how THAT turned out.

This year, they went for a relative moderate (for Republicans) in Judy Baar Topinka. And...they lost.

The Republicans are in bad, bad, bad, bad shape here.

[bluestateguy]

8. Re-redistricting?

The legislature could fuck up Roskam's district (the 6th) to make it easier for Tammy Duckworth to try aagin in 2008.

[Strelnikov_]

9. Lets Keep George (Ryan) Chimp In Office, Run The Investigations

and carry this collapse forward to the National GOP.