DCCC chairman Steve Israel (D-NY) really, really wants Alex Sink to run again in November to represent Florida’s 13th District. Ms. Sink lost her bid to do that on Tuesday, but the margin was narrow (less than 3,500 votes) and the turnout was abysmal (46% lower than in 2012, 21% lower than in 2010). If Ed Kilgore is correct, and the result of Tuesday’s special election is best explained by this low turnout, and not by disappointment with the president or opposition to ObamaCare, then Ms. Sink would be wise to keep campaigning for the seat.
A little more than 185,000 voted in the special election, compared to 329,347 in 2012 when President Obama was on the ticket. There are a lot of untapped voters and most of them will drag themselves to the polls in November with no urging from anyone. In my opinion, Alex Sink should be heavily favored to win if she runs.