1. Republicans edged out Democratic candidates in Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, and North Carolina to secure the Senate majority and bolster their majority in the House.
2. The Obama administration just suffered the worst midterm election results for a two-term president in more than 50 years.
3. Even in states where Democrats always win, like Maryland, Massachusetts, and Illinois, they still lost.
4. Literally only one Democratic challenger was able to unseat a Republican incumbent; Tom Wolf won the gubernatorial race in Pennsylvania.
5. According to exit polls, six in ten voters are angry or dissatisfied with the current administration. That would explain things.
6. Outside interest groups underwrote more midterm races than ever, with a record 36 congressional campaigns financed more heavily by super PACs and political nonprofits than by the candidates themselves. In 2010, there were only 11 races in which outside groups spent more than the candidates.
7. The senate race in North Carolina was the most expensive in history, surpassing $100 million and collecting $81 million in funds from outside groups.
8. If you are wondering why campaign spending is off the charts, it might be because in 2010 the Supreme Court ruled in Citizens United v. FEC that third-party organizations can solicit unlimited sums from outside donors, so long as individuals and corporations do not directly intervene in the campaign.
9. Obama’s hair has gone completely gray.
10. Measures to raise the hourly minimum wage have been approved in Alaska, Arkansas, Nebraska, and South Dakota. Also in Oakland and San Francisco!
11. Recreational use of marijuana was legalized in Oregon, Alaska and Washington D.C.
12. The nation’s first “soda tax” was passed in Berkeley, CA, and calls for a 1 cent per ounce tax on sugary drinks.
13. Wisconsin saw the largest voter turnout in a midterm election in the past 50 years, with a 56.5% turnout rate.
14. There are now 100 women in Congress for the first time ever!
15. There’s still only one SLU alum in Congress (Senator Susan Collins ‘75).