What makes this off-cycle election stand out from those in years past?
I mean, I'm an NYC guy...and this is the most interesting mayoral race in a generation. It won't necessarily be the closest, but the personalities are many and varied. There's a real choice for who New Yorkers want to lead their city. Moreover, California is jumping to the spotlight with its ballot measure on redistricting. It's the most populated state in the union, and what happens in California isn't going to stay there. If Gavin Newsom's ballot measure succeeds, it will really help the Democrats come 2026.
What's your honest read on where things stand heading into November 4th, based on what you are currently seeing in the polls?
Look, I think the most likely outcome is that it'll be a relatively strong night for Democrats. Mamdani is an overwhelming favorite in NYC. Spanberger is quite likely to win Virginia governor. Newsom's redistricting ballot measure is almost certain to pass in California.
The biggest question is on the New Jersey governor. The polls haven't been very close, but they've gotten tighter. The thing I like about that race from a historical angle is that history points in two different directions. No Republican has won the governorship when there was a GOP president since Tom Kean in 1985. But Democrats haven't won three consecutive New Jersey gubernatorial races since the 1960s.
CNN has long been the go-to destination for election coverage. From your perspective, what continues to set CNN apart on nights like this, and how can streaming raise the bar even higher?
I would say that the simple idea of looking at individual county returns is something that only really began in 2000 and then 2008 with the Magic Wall. I remember watching Hal Bruno in 2000 with a telestrator-type instrument circling key counties. Now, looking at counties is commonplace.
I think streaming will allow us to do more and go beyond the traditional election night coverage. We will acknowledge that you have multiple screens out to watch the results and take that into account. Yes, we'll tell you who has won and lost, but it'll be more than that.
For example, I think one of the things we've learned over the last year is that audiences enjoy when people talk with each other instead of just to the camera. That is, an extended discussion of what is going on and what these results mean. You get that on your traditional CNN feed, but we'll be able to do more of it on streaming.
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