Did the Democrats Tip the Primary to Hanger?

I don't think so, and here's why: Although it seems to me that as between Emmett Hanger and Scott Sayre, Hanger would make the better Senator, from the Democratic Party perspective Scott Sayre would certainly be the preferred oponent in November. If Sayre had won, David Cox might appeal to Hanger's moderate Republican supporters and, since the seat would be open, opportunities for shifting allegiances and fundraising would be created for the Democrats. Hanger's victory actually presents us with more formidable opponent and, therefore, if I had voted in the primary (which I did not), I might have voted for Sayre.

With arguments on both sides that it seems to me are equally compelling, I would guess that votes by Democrats in the primary were about equally split between Hanger and Sayre, and therefore did nothing to affect the outcome.

So to all you Sayre supporters and to Mr. Sayre himself, you've got no one to blame but yourself for your loss on Tuesday. If you were smarter about policies and governance, if you were more forthright and respectful in your campaigning, if you had come off as inspiring the trust that we should be able to have in our legislators, you might have pulled it off. You didn't. You lost. Get over it.

(Cross-posted at Cobalt 6)