HorsesAss.Org

Friday Night Multimedia Extravaganza!

by — ,

Stephen: A fix for the chronic underrepresentation of Hispanics and Latinos on television

VICE News: Authors of banned books speak out

WaPo: How the NFL blocks Black coaches

LegalEagle: Don’t record your crimes!

NowThis: Black Women’s Equal Pay Day 2022—How to close the wealth gap

The Dotard Трамп:

The New Yorker: One woman’s mission to feed Harlem

Robert Reich: The truth behind “self-made” billionaires

Liberal Redneck: Stacey Abrams, heartbeats, and Georgia

Alicia Menendez: President Biden seeks to restore trust in American Democracy

Last week’s Friday Night Multimedia Extravaganza can be found here.

Election 2022: Control of the Senate

by — ,


Senate Democrats*
Senate Republicans
98.1% probability
1.9% probability
Mean of 51 seats
Mean of 49 seats

Electoral College Map

Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Lousiana Maine Maryland Massachusettes Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia D.C. Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming

Election analyses are back! Today’s topic: Who will control the U.S. Senate after the mid-term elections?

We can answer this question by aggregating polling data that has been publicly released over the past year or so. The FAQ covers the methods but, in short, I am using polling data along with Monte Carlo simulation methods to assess probabilistic winners for each state and an overall probability of who will control the Senate.

Using voter preferences found in the past month of polls (whenever possible), 100,000 elections were simulated in each state. The result: Democrats had a Senate majority 82,684 times and there were 15,449 50-50 ties (these go to the Democrats, as VP Kamala Harris breaks Senate ties). Republicans controlled the Senate only 1867 times.

The results: If the election was held now, Democrats would have a 98.1% probability of controlling the Senate.

I’ll highlight just a few races.

Nevada is looking more and more like a Republican pick-up. Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto, the incumbent, has been losing to Republican Adam Laxalt in the last 4 polls. These suggest she would only have a 17.3% probability of winning right now. This is a recent trend, as Cortez Masto has lead in most of the earlier polling this year.

Ohio: In this Republican-held open seat, Democrat Tim Ryan is running against Republican J.D. Vance. Ryan has the polling advantage, but Vance has lead in the last three of six polls taken this month. Control of the Senate may turn on whether Ryan gets his mojo back.

Pennsylvania: Pennsylvanians know a carpetbagger when they see one, and they look determined to send Dr. Mehmet Oz (R) back to New Jersey. By leading in every poll this year, John Fetterman (D) has amassed a convincing lead in the race.

Wisconsin: Incumbent Senator Ron Johnson (R) just might lose his seat to Mandela Barnes (D). Barnes has lead in most polls this year. The race, based only on the last month of polling, is a tie. This race may be the one that control of the Senate hinges on.

Back to the topic of control of the Senate, here is the distribution of seats from the simulations:*

This graphs shows the probability of at least each number of seats controlled by the Democrats.* There is about a 40% chance of Democrats having at least 52 seats, the magic number that gives some immunity to Sinema—Manchin Dyspepsia.

  • 100000 simulations: Democrats control the Senate 98.1%, Republicans control the Senate 1.9%.
  • Average ( SE) seats for Democrats: 51.4 ( 1.0)
  • Average (SE) seats for Republicans: 48.6 ( 1.0)
  • Median (95% CI) seats for Democrats: 51 (50, 53)
  • Median (95% CI) seats for Republicans: 49 (47, 50)

Expected outcomes from the simulations:

  • Democratic seats w/no election: 34
  • Independent seats w/no election: two
  • Republican seats w/no election: 29
  • Contested Democratic seats likely to remain Democratic: 12
  • Contested Republican seats likely to remain Republican: 19
  • Contested Democratic seats likely to switch: two
  • Contested Republican seats likely to switch: two

This table shows the number of Senate seats controlled for different criteria for the probability of winning a state:* Safe>0.9999, Strong>90%, Leans>60%, Weak>50%

Threshold Safe + Strong + Leans + Weak
Safe Democrat 43
Strong Democrat 6 49
Leans Democrat 1 1 50
Weak Democrat 0 0 0 50
Ties 1 1 1 1
Weak Republican 1 1 1 49
Leans Republican 2 2 48
Strong Republican 8 46
Safe Republican 38

This table summarizes the results by state. Click on the poll number to see the individual polls included for a state.

# Sample Percent Percent Dem Rep
State @ polls size Dem Rep % wins % wins
AL 0 0 (0) (100)
AK 0 0 (0) (100)
AZ 8 5210 54.2 45.8 100.0 0.0
AR 1 618 41.3 58.7 0.0 100.0
CA 0 0 (100) (0)
CO 2 1448 56.3 43.7 100.0 0.0
CT 1 1853 58.8 41.2 100.0 0.0
FL 7 3775 47.7 52.3 2.5 97.5
GA 10 8481 51.0 49.0 91.1 8.9
HI 0 0 (100) (0)
ID 0 0 (0) (100)
IL 1 476 62.4 37.6 100.0 0.0
IN 0 0 (0) (100)
IA 1& 514 45.3 54.7 7.0 93.0
KS 2 1133 41.3 58.7 0.0 100.0
KY 1& 588 41.5 58.5 0.1 99.9
LA 0 0 (0) (100)
MD 1 666 62.9 37.1 100.0 0.0
MO 2 1473 43.7 56.3 0.0 100.0
NV 4 3069 48.8 51.2 17.3 82.7
NH 3 2025 55.6 44.4 100.0 0.0
NY 1 858 64.1 35.9 100.0 0.0
NC 5 3899 49.1 50.9 19.8 80.2
ND 0 0 (0) (100)
OH 6 4276 50.3 49.7 60.8 39.2
OK 2 818 37.4 62.6 0.0 100.0
OK 1 459 32.9 67.1 0.0 100.0
OR 0 0 (100) (0)
PA 7 5181 54.7 45.3 100.0 0.0
SC 1 546 40.7 59.3 0.0 100.0
SD 0 0 (0) (100)
UT 3 1198 46.6 53.4 4.6 95.4
VT 1 996 53.5 46.5 94.4 5.6
WA 3 1929 53.7 46.3 98.8 1.2
WI 5 3815 50.0 50.0 48.4 51.6

@ Current party in office
& An older poll was used (i.e. no recent polls exist).
*Analysis assume that independent candidates will caucus with the Democrats.

Details of the methods are given in the FAQ.

Note: This IS NOT an open thread. The comment section for this post is for discussion of things like polls, elections, control of the Senate, etc. Any poo-flinging is welcome at a nearby Open Thread. Thank you!

Wednesday 9-21 Open Thread

by — ,

The slow decline of Boeing in Western Washington has been gutting. Sometimes it’s surprising that there’s any meat left on the bone. And yet. Boeing is outsourcing corporate finance jobs to India. About 150 starting in October. This is nationwide, but surely it will take jobs from the Seattle area. You feel worse for the people doing factory work than these people. But still, it stinks.

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. And get vaccinated or boosted if you’re eligible.

Drinking Liberally — Seattle

by — ,

DLBottle DLBottle Tonight! The Seattle Chapter of Drinking Liberally is getting together for an evening of politics, drinks and just hanging out. Stop by and join us if you wish.

The Seattle Chapter of Drinking Liberally meets every Tuesday at the Roanoke Park Place Tavern (2409 10th Ave E, Seattle) starting at 8pm out on the back patio.

Chapters of Living Liberally are all over the place…if you can’t make it to the Seattle chapter, there is probably another nearby chapter for you.

Friday Night Multimedia Extravaganza!

by — ,

Stephen: “The rules were fairly clear” in Nina Totenberg’s friendship with Justice Ginsburg

John Oliver: Law & Order

LegalEagle: Legal in the US, but not…

Robert Reich: How billionaires got so powerful

The Dotard Трамп, MAGA Republicans, and Other Flavors of Traitors, Liars, and Grifters:

The Late Show: ♫ Guess Who Saved The Trains? Joe Biden ♬

NY Times: OB-GYNs confront legal impact of abortion bans

Last week’s Friday Night Multimedia Extravaganza can be found here.

Drinking Liberally — Seattle

by — ,

DLBottle DLBottle Are you passionate about politics? Let’s talk about it. How about tonight? Stop by the Seattle Chapter of Drinking Liberally and get your fix of politics over a drink.

The Seattle Chapter of Drinking Liberally meets every Tuesday at the Roanoke Park Place Tavern (2409 10th Ave E, Seattle) starting at 8pm out on the back patio.

Chapters of Living Liberally are all over the place…if you can’t make it to the Seattle chapter, there is probably another nearby chapter for you.

Friday Night Multimedia Extravaganza!

by — ,

Now This: Is Congress ready for Gen Z?

Alex Wagner: In Obama portrait unveiling, an important reminder of Democratic transitions of power

Trevor with Labor Sec. Marty Walsh: The future of work in America

WaPo: Obama’s portrait unveiling in 2 minutes

This Week In The Трамп Crime Syndicate and Cult:

Bloomberg Law: Clarence Thomas and oral arguments—Taciturn to talkative

Mark Fiore: Exceptions to American exceptionalism

Robert Reich: A tribute to the teacher who changed my life

Now This: Obama cracks jokes at the White House

Trevor Noah (throwback): How gerrymandering invalidates many Americans’ votes

Last week’s Friday Night Multimedia Extravaganza can be found here.

Friday Open Thread, Baby.

by — ,

So, it looks like the COVID-19 emergency is coming to an official end in Washington next month. This doesn’t mean that the disease is over, of course. But with better treatments and better vaccines it isn’t as deadly.

I don’t know if it’s the right call, but I do know that you should wash your hands right now. And get vaccinated or boosted if you’re eligible.

Wednesday Morning Open Thread

by — ,

Hey! By the end of the week, most of us will be able to get the updated Omicron vaccine. This is great news. I would encourage all of you who can to get this vaccine as soon as supplies are available. Let’s keep protecting ourselves and others. Vaccines are the greatest method we have to protect ourselves and our communities from COVID-19. The more people who get vaccinated and boosted, the better we’ll all be.

Drinking Liberally — Seattle

by — ,

DLBottle DLBottle

Tuesday is here, and that means the Seattle Chapter of Drinking Liberally gathers for an evening of politics and good cheer over drinks. You are invited to stop by.

The Seattle Chapter of Drinking Liberally meets every Tuesday at the Roanoke Park Place Tavern (2409 10th Ave E, Seattle) starting at 8pm out on the back patio.

Chapters of Living Liberally are all over the place…if you can’t make it to the Seattle chapter, there is probably another nearby chapter for you.

Can’t Bring Yourself to Type the Word “Ass”?

Eager to share our brilliant political commentary and blunt media criticism, but too genteel to link to horsesass.org? Well, good news, ladies: we also answer to HASeattle.com, because, you know, whatever. You're welcome!

Follow Goldy

[iire_social_icons]

HA Commenting Policy

It may be hard to believe from the vile nature of the threads, but yes, we have a commenting policy. Comments containing libel, copyright violations, spam, blatant sock puppetry, and deliberate off-topic trolling are all strictly prohibited, and may be deleted on an entirely arbitrary, sporadic, and selective basis. And repeat offenders may be banned! This is my blog. Life isn’t fair.