Evidence of a massive Governor shake-up nationwide

Quote from Karl Rove on a shake-up in Governor’s races across America as 37 of the 50 governor offices will be up for grabs. This bodes well for Oregon governor candidate Chris Dudley who is taking on John Kitzhaber.
From article “Will the GOP Storm the Statehouses?”,
Wall Street Journal 8/5/10

“…A quick survey of the political landscape shows six of the seven Democratic governors running for re-election are polling under 50% and in danger of losing, while all six GOP incumbents seeking re-election are expected to win. In the 24 open gubernatorial contests, Republicans lead in 15 and are tied in three others.More than half of Americans are likely to have a new chief executive for their state come November. Democrats are burdened by President Barack Obama’s low approval ratings and, in some open races, by widespread public dissatisfaction with the state’s retiring Democratic incumbent…Eighteen of the 21 states that could add or lose congressional seats have governors’ races this fall. There also will be a lot more Republican legislators after November to help draw redistricting lines for the coming decade.Republicans are poised to elect a new generation of leaders. After this fall’s election, the GOP could have two Indian-American, two Hispanic, and as many as seven women governors. This would provide powerful evidence of the GOP’s diversity and help refurbish the party’s image….”

“Governors also have far more electoral impact on their states than do distant, often-absent senators and congressmen. Since 1994, Republicans have won 26 Senate seats previously held by Democrats. Twenty of those pickups were in states with an incumbent Republican governor or a GOP gubernatorial candidate who won that same day. Governors matter even more when it comes to picking a president. When George W. Bush won the White House in 2000, there were GOP chief executives in nearly every important battleground, helping move swing states like West Virginia, Tennessee and Arkansas into his column. By comparison, the only major swing-state the GOP controlled in 2008 was Florida.The GOP wave is so strong right now that Republicans could simultaneously win the governorships in the critical Great Lake battlegrounds of Pennsylvania, Ohio, Wisconsin, Michigan and Illinois. And the GOP is likely to win the governorship in other presidential battlegrounds like Iowa, Nevada, New Mexico and Oregon. “

Oregon Catalyst