The Mandate to Be Divisive
With the expectation that it’s a reminder that will often have to be made, over the next four years, let’s note once again that Lincoln Chafee will be running Rhode Island based on the smallest victorious slice of the electorate ever:
As the winner of what came down to a four-man race for R.I. governor, Lincoln D. Chafee appears to have won the state’s top office with the lowest percentage of votes on record.
The Republican-turned-independent Chafee won with 36.1 percent of the vote in a race against Republican John Robitaille (33.6 percent), Democrat Frank T. Caprio (23 percent) and Moderate Party candidate Ken Block (6.5 percent).
In my view, the people who made up Linc’s third have as their unifying theme the thwarting of the other two-thirds’ efforts to to realign state policy with their own interests.
With barely a third of the vote, and fewer popular votes than Bob Healey running for Lt Gov., Governor-elect Chafee is already stacking his administration with divisive radicals and bowing to social extremists.
At the same time, 80% of Rhode Islanders want their civil-right to vote on the issue of marriage. See http://www.nomri.org .
Governor-elect Chafee should follow the mandate to let the people vote on marriage.
The percentage means nothing other than that we had an interesting race with three well funded candidates and a Democratic candidate who seemed to make it a strategy to alienate much of the party’s traditional base. Progressives know that many times we hold our nose and vote Democratic only because there is no better alternative. Sure the percentage then goes over 50% in a two way race, but it’s not necessarily any an indication of broad support after the election.
If Chafee didn’t win, one of the other two would’ve won with 36 percent.
On the other hand, Soviet elections were never won with just 36 percent of the vote.
I have noticed that of all sorts of insurance, health insurance is the most questionable because of the clash between the insurance policy company’s necessity to remain afloat and the buyer’s need to have insurance cover. Insurance companies’ commissions on health and fitness plans are certainly low, thus some organizations struggle to generate income. Thanks for the suggestions you discuss through your blog.