Interpreting the Results

In subsequent days, Hood was tapped for interviews by multiple radio stations including WSJS-AM in Winston-Salem, WZTK-FM in the Triad, WZNN-AM in Asheville, and WCHL-AM in Chapel Hill. Reporters with the Asheville Citizen Times, The Charlotte Observer, the Freedom Newspapers chain, and the Associated Press did the same. Hood told AP’s Gary Robertson, who was writing about the Democrat successes in the NC Senate and House, that Republicans “don’t have a unified message or leader.” Hood also penned a post-election piece for National Review Onlined. Wednesday’s topic was the mixed results for Republicans around the country in down-ballot races. On Thursday, Paul Chesser made NRO with his commentary on Sen. John Edwards, whom many had expected to deliver southern votes to the Kerry ticket. “He failed miserably and wasn’t close to a difference-maker in any state,” Chesser wrote. Meantime, Martinez can be heard and seen this weekend on WNCU’s “North Carolina Capital Review” (Saturday at 10:30 a.m. on 90.7 FM in the Triangle) and on NBC 17’s “At Issue.” Both shows feature post-election discussion. Next week, Hood will be speaking to civic clubs in Raleigh and Rocky Mount on what to make of the seemingly schizophrenic results: big wins by the GOP and big losses by the Democrats at the national level, and to a large extent, the opposite result in North Carolina.