Those expressing most worry about economy went heavy for pugs (VA, NJ)

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

This is exit poll stuff. Obviously the folks with the very most to be rationally worried about economically, like the poor, voted Dem. But the expressed attitudes are noteworthy. As I recall, under Bush Republican voters were the only ones telling exit pollsters the economy was good.

Sadly, an improving economy (already a tall order) is only half the battle in assuaging this kind of discontent. As the article notes, the economy was a big cited factor in 1994 even though the economy was obviously much better in November, 1994 than when Clinton took office.

'09 Exit Polls: Voters Wary of Economy, Obama Not a Factor
Discontent Voters Heavily Favored Republicans in VA, NJ Races

http://abcnews.go.com/PollingUnit/Politics/election-2009-virginia-jersey-exit-polls-obama-economy/story?id=8984551

...Just under half the voters in Virginia, 48 percent, approved of the way Obama is handling his job, rising to 57 percent in New Jersey. Most in both states, in any case, said the president was not a factor in their vote.

Perhaps most striking were economic views: A vast 89 percent in New Jersey and 85 percent in Virginia said they were worried about the direction of the nation's economy in the next year; 56 percent and 53 percent, respectively, said they were "very" worried about it.

Voters who expressed the highest levels of economic discontent heavily favored the Republican candidates in both states – underscoring the challenge Obama and his party may face in 2010 if economic attitudes don't improve. The analogy is to 1994, when nearly six in 10 voters said the economy was in bad shape, and they favored the out-of-power Republicans by 26 points, helping the GOP to a 52-seat gain and control of Congress for the first time in 42 years.

In Virginia on Tuesday, voters who were "very" worried about the economy concern supported the Republican winner, Bob McDonnell by a wide margin, 77-23 percent. In New Jersey, while the gap wasn't quite so broad, voters who were most worried about the economy backed the Republican Chris Christie by 61-34 percent as he unseated incumbent Democrat Jon Corzine. McDonnell also won those who called the economy the single most important issue in their vote, by 15 points...

[ProSense]

1. Corzine was unpopular because of his budget cuts and property taxes. His troubles

on the economy started the year he took office.

[Nay]

2. Just proves my point about how dumb VA is. Economy is bad--vote PUB??

Does anyone in this godforsaken state have any memory capacity at all? Does no one remember their boy, their "Christian may-un," getting on the tube last September, crying how the banks needed $700 billion RIGHT AWAY or the economy was going to vaporize? Noooooooo. Now it's all Obama's fault.

And ppl wonder why I thought it might be a good idea if the Pubs won the presidency -- as horrible as that would have been, at least the shit would have fallen into the correct lap. I predict that in 2012, we'll see exactly that -- another Pub presidency, who will proceed to blame everything on the "last 4 yrs of the Dems" and go on to rip us all off even more, if that's possible. But nobody listens to me.

[Arkana]

3. No but you see Republicans will give us FREE MONEY!

Don't you see? FREE MONEY!!!

[iceman66]

4. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot!