TRAILER: The Runner-Up

Billboard reports:

The political baptism of Clay Aiken will be explored with the premiere of the new docu-series, The Runner-Up, premiering Tuesday night (April 7) on the Esquire Network. From the very first frame, the cameras follow him from his initial days stumping door to door to the nail-biting drama leading to the results of the primary election as the American Idol and Celebrity Apprentice alum campaigns for a North Carolina Congressional seat in 2014. What the cameras did capture was Aiken-a Democrat- unfiltered. He curses like a sailor, micro-manages his staff -- a key example is when he obsesses over the proper way signs are displayed for oncoming traffic -- and says some politically incorrect statements about his Democratic opposition, Keith Crisco, who attacked him in campaign advertisements stating he did not show up for meetings of a presidential committee for people with disabilities. He also takes selfies on the campaign trail with unsuspecting voters who did not even realize he was running for office, records robo-calls with his cell phone, and stews over how publicity for his campaign is being run. All of this -- and the nail biting drama of waiting for primary results -- is captured in four days worth of footage. And that’s just the first episode.

The Esquire Network used to be the Style Network. Find it on your local cable provider here.

GOP Celebrates Senate Majority

Sarah Palin Warns Republicans

"When you cut through all the 'inside baseball' stuff in this Omnibus Spending Bill that's in front of Congress, you're left with two cold hard facts: this bill doesn't defund Obama's amnesty (so he gets to reward lawbreakers with your tax dollars) and it adds to our dangerous, unsustainable debt. Hey, if you thought we wanted more of the same as we worked our butts off to get good folks elected in November, then why did we vote to oust liberals who got America into this mess in the first place? Guess what, GOP: our victory party is over and voters are wide awake and trusting you to keep your promises to America. Get a handle on your debt. Stop Obama's amnesty to illegal aliens. Support our military. Bottom line: we elected you to stop Obama's 'fundamental transformation of America.' Do it – especially you Republicans who promised to do it. Or face America's wrath next go 'round because an elephant never forgets." - Sarah Palin, posting to Facebook.

Democrats Lose Ninth Senate Seat

Voter Turnout: Lowest In 72 Years

From the New York Times:

The abysmally low turnout in last week’s midterm elections — the lowest in more than seven decades — was bad for Democrats, but it was even worse for democracy. In 43 states, less than half the eligible population bothered to vote, and no state broke 60 percent. In the three largest states — California, Texas and New York — less than a third of the eligible population voted. New York’s turnout was a shameful 28.8 percent, the fourth-lowest in the country, despite three statewide races (including the governor) and 27 House races.

Over all, the national turnout was 36.3 percent; only the 1942 federal election had a lower participation rate at 33.9 percent. The reasons are apathy, anger and frustration at the relentlessly negative tone of the campaigns. Republicans ran a single-theme campaign of pure opposition to President Obama, and Democrats were too afraid of the backlash to put forward plans to revive the economy or to point out significant achievements of the last six years. Neither party gave voters an affirmative reason to show up at the polls.

Colorado and Oregon, two states with voting by mail, had double the voter turnout of New York, which has no early voting. Maine, which allows early voting, had the highest turnout in the nation at 59.3%.

ALASKA: Another Dem Senate Loss

Via the Wall Street Journal:

Republican Dan Sullivan was declared the winner of Alaska’s Senate race early Wednesday morning, a week after voting ended, as the Associated Press said he held an insurmountable lead over one-term Democratic Sen. Mark Begich. Mr. Sullivan's win brings the Republican majority in the next Senate to 53 seats, with one race, in Louisiana, still to be settled in a runoff. Mr. Begich’s campaign was doomed after he failed to make up significant ground Tuesday as Alaska elections officials counted about 20,000 ballots cast by absentee voters, provisional and early voters. The Democrat cut into Mr. Sullivan’s Election Day advantage by only 238 votes in Tuesday’s count, not enough to significantly diminish his 8,100-vote lead. The Associated Press called the race shortly before 3 a.m. Eastern Time. With about 30,000 votes still to be counted, Mr. Sullivan leads by 7,991 votes out of 244,998 cast. Mr. Begich would have to win more than 62% of the remaining uncounted votes to draw even.

SAN DIEGO: DeMaio's Accuser Arrested

The election is finally settled, but the bizarre news out of San Diego and the DeMaio campaign continues.

Todd Bosnich, who claimed GOP congressional candidate Carl DeMaio sexually harassed him, was arrested Tuesday on charges of assaulting his mother last week, San Diego police said. Around 7 p.m. on Friday, Bosnich got into an argument with his mother in the 14700 block of Caminito Vista Estrellado, police Lt. Kevin Mayer said in an email. During the argument, Bosnich allegedly pushed his mother, disabled her phone and threw a drinking glass at her. The incident happened at her Del Mar home. San Diego police took Bosnich into custody at 9:15 a.m. Tuesday at the same location, Mayer said. Bosnich was booked into jail about 11:45 a.m., according to the sheriff's jail website. He was arrested on battery and assault with a deadly weapon charges, Mayer said. Bosnich, 29, did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment. The jail website showed Tuesday night he was no longer in custody. Mayer did not say why San Diego police responded to the incident in Del Mar, which is patrolled by the San Diego County Sheriff's Department.

MASSACHUSETTS: Scott Lively Declares "Great Victory" In Gubernatorial Race

"I want you to recognize what a great victory we have achieved in this campaign. A Missionary Pastor with an inner-city church that seats just 45, mostly street-people, ran a part-time campaign, serving as his own campaign manager, with only 20-30 campaign volunteers (only about half of whom dedicated more than 40 hours to the effort), and a budget of just over $25,000. Deliberately (by the prompting of the Holy Spirit) limiting his campaign activities only to those public appearances and media interviews to which he was invited (not trying to win the seat in his own strength but staying out of the way to let God pull the strings), he (by conservative accounts) handily won the two major debates in which he appeared, shocked the hosts, audience and fellow panelists in every forum with his boldness and candor, and preached the unvarnished Gospel of Jesus Christ in nearly all of the 30 or so public events in which he appeared. I believe my faithfulness in stepping out into the political arena to preach the gospel has spiritually broken the back of the anti-Lively coalition and demolished its campaign of defamation.  The public has seen me in the debates and other venues and know I am a sincere and kind-hearted Christian man, whether or not they agree with my views.  They will never again believe the vicious LGBT lies trying to paint me as a genocidal monster.  The Lord has vindicated me in an entirely unique way.." - Scott Lively, who took 0.9% of the vote but says he so enjoyed campaigning that he will run for office again.

DeMaio Concedes

No recount. And that's that. (Except that Teabagistan will forever cite the sexual harassment scandals.)

Ted Cruz: Hearing For Loretta Lynch Must Wait Until New Senate Takes Office

"President Obama’s Attorney General nominee deserves fair and full consideration of the United States Senate, which is precisely why she should not be confirmed in the lame duck session of Congress by senators who just lost their seats and are no longer accountable to the voters. The Attorney General is the President's chief law enforcement officer. As such, the nominee must demonstrate full and complete commitment to the law. Loretta Lynch deserves the opportunity to demonstrate those qualities, beginning with a statement whether or not she believes the President’s executive amnesty plans are constitutional and legal." - Sen. Ted Cruz, being predictable.

Unshocking

Details.

VIRGINIA: Democrats Retain Senate Seat

SAN DIEGO: Rep. Scott Peters Takes Vote Count Lead Over Homocon Carl DeMaio

Via NBC San Diego:

An updated tally puts U.S. Rep. Scott Peters ahead of challenger Carl DeMaio by 861 votes in the tight race for the 52nd Congressional District. A final, certified winner will not be announced until Monday. After Election Night Tuesday, candidate Carl DeMaio led by fewer than a 1,000 votes, but both said they were optimistic about the outcome. DeMaio spokesman Dave McCulloch was at the county Registrar of Voters Office Thursday as the numbers were announced to give his take. "As you said, those numbers have changed a lot, and we still remain optimistic but cautious in that. There is still more data to be analyzed, there are still more votes to be counted and we want to make sure that every vote is counted in this election," he said. On Thursday, representatives from both campaigns monitored registrar workers as they counted thousands of mail-in and provisional ballots.

Multiple right wing sites and a Log Cabin chapter declared DeMaio the winner earlier today.

Brian Brown: GOP Won Because Of NOM

"Our two most prominent efforts to influence Senate contests were in North Carolina and Arkansas. The NOM Victory Fund spent over $200,000 in these races on television ads, direct mail and grassroots outreach to mobilize marriage supporters. When our TV ad and mailer hit in North Carolina, Thom Tillis trailed Kay Hagan by 2-3 points. Within days, we helped bring the race into a tie, and then working along with NC Values Coalition (which co-sponsored the ads and with whom we worked to pass the state’s marriage amendment in 2012) we helped mobilize grassroots marriage supporters to get to the polls. In what many consider the biggest upset of the night, Thom Tillis defeated Kay Hagan by two points, and marriage helped make the difference.

"Arkansas was also a race where marriage made a difference. When our TV ad began airing, marriage champion Tom Cotton led incumbent Mark Pryor by 7 points. Cotton ended up winning by seventeen points! Clearly, our advertising and grassroots efforts in that state helped to boost his margin of victory. We were able to mount very strong grassroots efforts that helped make a difference in a number of other races. For example, we helped sponsor (along with FRC Action and others) a multi-state bus tour to energize marriage supporters who went to the polls to elect Joni Ernst to the Senate in Iowa and Ben Sasse in Nebraska, as well as turnout supporters to help Gov. Sam Brownback and Sen. Pat Roberts win reelection in Kansas." - Hate group leader Brian Brown, writing for the Heritage Foundation's blog, Daily Signal.

Rand Paul: Every Democrat Who Lost Did So Because Of Hillary Clinton

Sen. Rand Paul has created a series of Facebook posts showing every losing Democrat endorsed by Hillary Clinton. And you thought this was all Obama's fault.

Carl DeMaio: Race Was Exhausting, So What's A Few More Days Of Counting?

Scandal-plagued homocon US House candidate Carl DeMaio held a press conference this morning where he declined to declared victory on his 752-vote lead. As about 180,000 provisional, absentee, and mail-in ballots remain to be counted statewide, DeMaio said, "It’s been a really exhausting campaign, what’s a few more days?" Despite no winner having been declared, multiple right wing sites are crowing about DeMaio's win over "liberal hate groups." In the clip below, you can see Log Cabin Republicans head Gregory Angelo standing behind DeMaio.

Reince Priebus Takes Victory Lap

"America is tired of Obama's failed policies."

COLORADO: Dem Gov. John Hickenlooper Squeaks Out Reelection Win

NOM Declares "Overwhelming Victory"

"Marriage won an overwhelming victory last night. In red states and blue, candidates who supported marriage as the union of one man and one woman won election and those who didn't were rejected by voters. The Republican Party should take note that their nominees who favored gay 'marriage' were opposed by NOM and they were resoundingly defeated. It's time for the GOP elite and consultant class to wake up and realize that marriage is a winning issue, in red states and blue. Traditional marriage amendments have received 50 million votes across America, and candidates who embraced marriage this election won, while Republicans who rejected marriage were themselves rejected. The election results tonight were a stunning rebuke of those who wish to redefine marriage. We look forward to working with Congress to advance the cause of marriage." - Hate group leader Brian Brown, via press release.

FLORIDA: Hater Cheers Crist Loss

Stemberger is the head of the Florida Family Policy Council and the chairman of the anti-gay answer to the Boy Scouts. He recently declared that the fight against same-sex marriage is "worth dying for."