From Texas to Pennsylvania to Ohio, Democrat-backed candidates ran successful campaigns in some of the nation's largest school systems and in political battlegrounds. They emphasized test scores and bus safety over debates about which bathrooms transgender students use and banning books from school libraries. The result was a set of election results at the local level that accentuated the punishment meted out against Republicans by swing voters earlier this month.
"This is surreal," victorious Virginia House of Delegates candidate Kimberly Pope Adams declared as she walked into her raucous victory party Tuesday night. In 2023, the Democrat lost her race for this Virginia House seat by only 53 votes. On Tuesday night, she won with 53 percent of the vote, defeating Republican incumbent Kim Taylor overwhelmingly, with her focus on affordability, abortion rights, health care and spreading the wealth in the 82nd District
