Republicans Gain in NY Suburbs; Part of a Wider Trend?

In the Washington Examiner, Michael Barone writes about Republican gains in the New York Assembly in special elections on Tuesday:

In special elections for the New York Assembly [Tuesday], Republicans appear to have captured two Assembly seats formerly held by Democrats, one in Suffolk County and one in Westchester County. They held a Republican seat in Nassau County and failed to capture a district in Queens that has been held not just by the Democrats but by the Weprin family for many years. The New York secretary of state's website doesn't have the results, and I can't find any mention of these elections in the New York Times website; perhaps the Times is content to let the Huffington Post cover this local story. But it appears that Republican Dean Murray has a narrow lead in 3rd Assembly district centered on Brookhaven, just west of the Hamptons in a district that has voted between 59% and 62% Democratic in the 2008, 2006 and 2004 general elections. And the Republican nominee "easily defeated" the Democrat in the 89th district in Westchester County, which includes part of White Plains and runs north to Bedford and Pound Ridge, in which no Republican ran in 2008 or 2006 and the Democrat won 59%-41% in 2004.

These victories follow recent gains made by Republicans in November's local elections in the state. In a major upset, Republican Rob Astorino won the race for Westchester County Executive over three-term incumbent Andy Spano, then considered a rising star in the state Democratic Party. Republicans Peter Koo and Dan Halloran (who is an RNLA Member) also won seats on the Queens City Council, not an area where Republicans are used to winning. These small victories were overshadowed by the McDonnell and Christie victories (and for good reason); however, they very well could have been early signs that Republicans were beginning to show signs of life in the region.

Barone notes that, curiously, The New York Times failed to even report on the elections. Perhaps the honorable publication does not want to shed further light on the fact that Republicans have done well in the Northeast in recent months. One cannot ignore Doug Hoffman's loss to Rep. Bill Owens in the special election for New York's 23rd Congressional District. However, when you factor in the recent New York elections discussed above, Chris Christie's victory in New Jersey, and of course, Scott Brown's victory in Massachusetts, there are reasons to be optimistic about a region of the country where Republicans have increasingly become an endangered species. Add in the fact that Republican candidates for the U.S. Senate in New Hampshire, Delaware, and Pennsylvania are currently polling well above their potential Democratic opponents, there are even more reasons to be hopeful about a Republican resurgence in the Northeast. (And yes, I'm including Delaware and Pennsylvania as part of the Northeast.)