A house united

Election 2008 | On Capitol Hill big gains for Democrats betray GOP shortcomings | Mark Bergin

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For all the talk of change, the 2008 election turned out not to be a referendum on the status quo. Despite two years of dismal governance and approval ratings below 20 percent, the two Democrat-controlled chambers of Congress received strong endorsement from voters in the form of greater majorities. Indeed, the blue wave that swept across the American map on election night appeared more the result of a Republican Party in shambles than a mandate for a new direction.

Voters didn't want change as much as they wanted Democrats. That partisan yearning may have yielded change in the presidential race. But in Congress, it brought more of the same.

Case in point: Not a single incumbent Democrat in the Senate suffered defeat. In the House of Representatives, only four incumbent Democrats fell, allowing the party to make significant gains for the second consecutive election. In 2006, Democrats knocked off 22 incumbent Republicans and won eight open seats.