rec'd from All America PAC

November 10, 2006
 

TO:                 Interested Parties

FROM:           Dan Pfeiffer,   All America PAC Communications Director

RE:                 All America PAC Post-Election Report



 

Moderate Heartland Democrats Gave Democrats Their Victory in 2006

The lesson of this election is clear – we won by turning the Red states of the Heartland Blue. Indiana, which has voted for the Republicans in 16 of the last 17 presidential elections, sent three new Democrats to Congress.  This is not an accident. Evan Bayh has developed a formula for winning under the most difficult of circumstances.  He is fiscally responsible, tough on national security, shares the values of middle class families, and values progress over partisanship.

The election results show that following the lead of Indiana and the Heartland is the best way to build a true Democratic Majority and capture the White House in 2008.

Of the 29 House seats that the Democrats picked up, 10 came from the Midwest.

And more than half (15) came from a region comprised of the Midwest and the Industrial Belt (Pennsylvania to the east through Kansas to the west) – a region culturally and economically similar to Indiana.  Indeed, geographically, Indiana is at the epicenter of this region.

According to Pew Research, Democrats increased their vote total by 7 percent among Independents and 5 percent among Moderate voters from the 2004 House elections.

12 of the 29 (40%) House pick ups were from Red districts that Bush won in 2004.
 

All America PAC’s Efforts

While Bayh’s top political priority was electing Indiana Democrats, he also stumped for Democratic candidates across the country, particularly in Red States like Ohio, Kentucky, Nevada, and Arizona – and directly contributed more than $270,000 to over 350 Democratic candidates and Party committees this cycle.

Along with stumping for candidates all across the country -  Bayh’s All America PAC trained and deployed 50 paid campaign staffers to crucial  races in Indiana, Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina.  These Camp Bayh staffers were victorious in 40 of the campaigns they worked on, including eight Congressional races.

As a former Governor, Bayh knows the importance of state legislatures and was committed to electing Democrats in state House and Senate races across the country.  The Hotline reported earlier this week, “IA GOP sources credit staffers detailed to IA state leg races by Sen. Evan Bayh's All America PAC for the Dem victory in the state. Approx. 25 staffers paid by Bayh's PAC helped IA Dems work on those campaigns; Republicans had fewer than 10 paid staffs working on leg. Races.”

Along with the success in Iowa, Democrats took back the Indiana State House and the New Hampshire State House and Senate.  According to Boston Globe political columnist James Pindell: “There’s no doubt that Evan Bayh can take some credit for the fact that Democrats in New Hampshire had an historic night,” Pindell told HPR. “He gave his time.  He gave his money.  He also allowed 15 staffers to share their resources for these races.  The most important thing Evan Bayh can take away from the victories in New Hampshire is a more knowledgeable staff.”
 

What Comes Next

Senator Bayh told the Associated Press yesterday that he would wait until after the holidays to make an announcement.  In the meantime, Bayh will continue to aggressively travel the country with visits to Iowa and New Hampshire planned before the end of the year.
 
 

Dan Pfeiffer
Communications Director
All America PAC
Senator Evan Bayh, Chairman