I'm actually pretty optimistic about POTUS. Disappointed about the Senate for sure. And I honestly didn't expect that half the country would have a change of heart since 2016, because I think that level of hatred and bigotry is deeply entrenched, which is scary but not surprising.

Biden officially won Wisconsin.

[link]

I feel like part of the problem is that the GOP coalition seems to have a lot of voters who are okay with just about anything as long as the candidate is good one on at least one issue they care about. Meanwhile the Dem coalition seems to have a lot of voters who are not okay with anything as long as the candidate isn't good on any issue they care about.

Biden officially won Wisconsin.

Excellent. If he keeps Michigan and Nevada, he doesn't need Pennsylvania.

{{Buffistas}}

I'm feeling some hope this morning: Governor Inslee has won a third term; "Your friend and mine, Attorney General Bob Ferguson", as my best friend refers to him, looks to be on his way to staying in office - his primary joy in life appears to be suing the shit out of the current Federal administration - Referendum 90 passed handily, requiring most Washington public schools to teach comprehensive, consent-based sex education starting in kindergarten; my state and local representatives are all staying, and the District Court judicial candidate with a demonstrated commitment to using restorative justice to keep juvenile offenders out of the system won my county handily.

If any of the three of us were still in Utah, I would not have even this little bit of calm: apart from the politics, a week and a half ago the head of the hospitals association went to Governor Herbert and said "Sign these triage protocols; we're going to need them in two weeks."

I am definitely making a list of states that aren't a gerrymandered, racist mess like Texas, and at some point we'll figure out how and when to get to one of them.

Dana, that's definitely a "Hey! ...wait, I have no defense" moment.

Oh, I've lived here almost all of my adult life, over 20 years, in three major cities. I know it's far more purple than people think, and it's voter suppression and systemic racism and shit that keeps the Republican government in power. But I looked at all of my local and state races, and almost without exception, it was Republicans all the way down, and I'm running out of cope.

I am definitely making a list of states that aren't a gerrymandered, racist mess like Texas, and at some point we'll figure out how and when to get to one of them.

I go back and forth between this and wanting to fight the good fight in my current racist red state. At the moment DH is ready to leave Florida. He is super upset.

There was a news story about a woman in Florida. She had gone into labor and her husband was driving her to the hospital, but she insisted that they stop by the polling place. The election workers carried out a mail-in ballot, verified her identity and - to their surprise - she insisted on filling in the ballot and handing it in before going on the the hospital. Gotta admire her persistance.