Last night, I had an encounter which showed that civility isn't completely gone from American politics. I was out getting food, and I saw a few people with signs supporting John Koster, the Republican candidate for our congressional district. Now, not only did I vote for his opponent, Democrat Suzan DelBene, but I've also been interning for her. So I went up to them, and after mentioning that I worked for Suzan, asked how long they spent out at this crosswalk (realize it was rather chilly). They suggested that Suzan come out in her limo (she is a multi-millionaire, and has not shied away from using her money to fund her media blitz). I laughed, and asked them to make sure Koster had his concession speech ready. They laughed, we both agreed that tomorrow will be interesting (the election is pretty much on a knife edge, as this district was deliberately designed as a swing seat), and I left to puck up my sushi.
I'm not entirely sure what tonight is going to be like. I'll be at the official press event, where Suzan will presumably deliver either her victory or concession speech. I did the same thing on primary night, but that night, we had nothing to concern ourselves with except for the primary in the 1st District. Now, we'll be watching the returns for our own race, along with those for the Presidency, the governorship, the Senate, and several referenda (including one legalizing gay marriage, and another legalizing pot - both would be national firsts if they passed). I also wonder if there might be anything different because this seat is currently vacant - the incumbent, Jay Inslee (D) resigned to run for governor, so there's technically two elections going on - one to finish out Inslee's term, the other for the next term. If Suzan wins tomorrow night, she will become a Congresswoman immediately, and presumably will be in DC for the lame duck Congress.
