Last week, I recorded two episodes of Midatlantic in a sunny Birmingham. March has brought unexpectedly lovely weather, a fact made possible by global warming. My panel for the transatlantic debate podcast looked at the Trump endorsement-driven victory of Bernie Moreno in the Ohio GOP Senate primary and the ongoing turmoil within the UK's Conservative Party under Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's stewardship.
Joining me were Aram Fischer, political analyst from Oakland; Logan Phillips, pollster from Washington, D.C.; and from across the pond, Leah Brown, political consultant from Kent, and Cory Bernard, a political brain from Manchester. Together, we navigated the week's political stories and their broader implications, and what they signify about the state of democracy on both sides of the Atlantic.
Aram highlighted the stark rightward drift of Ohio, a phenomenon reflective of a broader national trend where MAGA (Make America Great Again) ideologies have taken a firm hold within the Republican Party. This shift, he noted, is particularly evident in Ohio's rural areas, which have turned increasingly red, contrasting with the steadfastly blue cities.
Logan shed light on the dynamics at play in the American political arena. Despite the Democrats being underdogs, their edge in candidate recruitment could potentially allow them to overperform in strategic locations in the November general election. Yet, the significance of a Trump's endorsement in primaries cannot be understated, having reinvigorated his influence within the GOP, especially in Senate races, all while depressing the Republicans' voter appeal to the wider electorate.
Turning our gaze to the UK, Leah and Corey painted a picture of a Conservative Party in crisis. Under Sunak's leadership, the party struggles with internal dissent and faces dismal polling. Leah criticised Sunak for failing to marshal his party and set a compelling vision for the future. Corey echoed this sentiment, lamenting Sunak's missed opportunity to redefine the Conservative Party's trajectory after Boris Johnson and Liz Truss.
2024 will be pivotal on both sides of the Atlantic, with both the UK and US electorates going to the polls. In Ohio, the GOP's embrace of far-right candidates underlines the party's current trajectory, raising questions about its future direction. While in the UK, the Conservative Party's internal divisions and leadership challenges highlight the difficulties of maintaining unity and direction in tumultuous times.
In both the US and the UK, the political landscape is undoubtedly shifting. Join the debate below: is the primary system pushing Republicans rightwards, and is Sunak to blame for the Tories' polling woes, or is the end of the Conservatives inevitable in 2024?
The Political Earthquakes in Ohio and the UK's Conservative Crisis