Late on the eve
of Election Day, Republican presidential nominee Sen.
John McCain wound up a whirlwind seven-state sweep across
what were seen as the election's key
battleground states with a stirring speech in his home
state of Arizona. Before the Arizona senator took to the
podium to make his final stand on Monday night, he was
introduced by his wife, Cindy, whose voice quavered as
she choked up while expressing pride in her husband
and his accomplishments.
Some may have
perceived Mrs. McCain's show of emotion as a natural
reaction to the end of an exhausting and rigorous campaign,
but others wondered if it was a telltale omen of an
impending defeat. If it was, nothing in John
McCain's voice, however hoarse it may have been after
a long and arduous day of campaigning, suggested as
much.
Surrounded by his
closest friends in the Senate, senators Joe Lieberman
of Connecticut and Lindsay Graham of South Carolina, McCain
implored the excited crowd in Prescott, Ariz., to
stand up and fight with him one last time as polls
showed him gaining on his Democratic rival Barack Obama
amongst the constituencies that would decide the 2008 race
for the White House. However, McCain's all-out
final push and rousing call to action seems to have
come too late.
Buoyed by what
appeared to be a close race, Log Cabin Republicans kicked
off Election Day in Washington, D.C., on a note that was
simultaneously positive and defiant.
"We're optimistic about the election,"
Log Cabin Republicans president Patrick Sammon said
via e-mail early on Tuesday. "The news media seems to
have forgotten that voters elect presidents, not political
pundits. Every vote counts."
Scott Tucker, Log
Cabin Republicans communication director, echoed that
sentiment, describing the mood in their offices as
"hopeful."
"Our
national staff spent the morning waving signs for McCain on
street corners and at a Metro station in
Virginia," Tucker said.
The sense that
John McCain might pull off the biggest political upset of
all time still floated gingerly around Republican
circles.
Despite the
encouraging mood of the Log Cabin Republicans, another
conservative Washington insider expressed a slightly less
enthusiastic outlook on the day.
"I'm being told by some Republican insiders
that the mood right now is 'expect the worst
and hope for the best,'" said Washington,
D.C.-based communications consultant and
conservative political commentator Marc Destito.
"I noticed
an incredibly long line at my polling station in D.C. this
morning. Usually in D.C. the general election is an
afterthought. The heavier turnout takes place during
the primary since it is a Democratic city and that is
when the true suspense happens. By Election Day it is a
foregone conclusion who will win in D.C. But this year it
almost seemed as if people were lining up, knowing
Obama would carry the District, but just to be able to
say that they cast their vote for something
historic," Destito continued.
By late afternoon
the mood among the GOP faithful seemed to be growing
more grim despite remaining somewhat cautiously
optimistic.
While one
Republican commentator excitedly bragged that things looked
good because McCain was projected the winner in Kentucky
early on in the evening, two others seemed resigned to
defeat even at that early stage in what would
ultimately turn into an evening filled with disappointment
for the GOP.
When asked how
she would be spending election night, one Republican
activist simply said she'd be "drinking
heavily." When asked where the Republican Party
will go from here, another said, "Figure out how
to lose the moose."
As most news
outlets began to call the crucial states of Pennsylvania and
Ohio for Barack Obama and it became increasingly apparent
that McCain's chances of winning were fading,
the Log Cabin Republicans weighed in on the
evening's developments by announcing, "We
will be issuing a statement when a winner is
declared."
Well, it
wasn't long thereafter before a winner was indeed
declared. As soon as the polls closed in California,
Barack Obama went over the top and Senator McCain
quickly conceded in a conciliatory address. At that
point, Log Cabin Republicans president Patrick Sammon issued
the following statement:
"Log Cabin
congratulates Sen. Barack Obama on his historic victory.
While Log Cabin Republicans proudly supported Sen. John
McCain, we recognize this important moment in American
history.
"On behalf of Log
Cabin Republicans members all across the country, we
thank Senator McCain for his service to our country. He
should be proud of the campaign he ran, especially his
efforts to reach out to gay and lesbian Americans. He
was the most pro-gay GOP presidential nominee in
American history. We were proud to stand with him in this
historic election."
And so the day
that began with hope on all sides ended happily for some,
and not so much for others.
