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Edited by
Sean D. Foreman, Marcia L. Godwin
& Walter Clark Wilson
Foreword by
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen

THEROADS
TO CONGRESS
2018
American Elections in the
Trump Era
The Roads to Congress 2018
Sean D. Foreman
Marcia L. Godwin • Walter Clark Wilson
Editors

The Roads to
Congress 2018
American Elections in the Trump Era
Editors
Sean D. Foreman Marcia L. Godwin
Department of History and Political Department of Public and Health
Science Administration
Barry University University of La Verne
Miami, FL, USA La Verne, CA, USA

Walter Clark Wilson


Department of Political Science and
Geography
The University of Texas at San
Antonio
San Antonio, TX, USA

ISBN 978-3-030-19818-3    ISBN 978-3-030-19819-0 (eBook)


https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-19819-0

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature
Switzerland AG 2020
This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the
Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of
translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on
microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval,
electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now
known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are
exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information
in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the
publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to
the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The
publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and
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Cover illustration: © traffic_analyzer / Getty Images

This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature
Switzerland AG
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
This work is dedicated to those who continue to raise and examine
intriguing questions about election dynamics and trends, and to enduring
democracy in America.
Foreword

Like most institutions, Congress has changed over the course of the past
few decades. In the almost three decades that I walked those halls—voting,
meeting with constituents, and representing the voice of my South Florida
community—I was, and will always be, in awe of this great nation and the
privilege it afforded me to be a part of this enduring body.
On September 3, 1989, I was sworn in as the first Hispanic woman and
first Cuban American in Congress. My background was in education. I
had been a public and private school teacher, as well as principal, of a small
private bilingual school in Hialeah, a working-class area of South Florida.
I had served in the Florida House of Representatives and Florida Senate.
I was one of only 32 women, 18 Democrat and 14 Republican, in the US
Congress when I arrived. The current Congress now boasts 131 women,
the largest female delegation to serve in the institution, including 25 in
the Senate and 102 members plus 3 Delegates and the Resident
Commissioner in the House.
The make-up of Congress has changed and will continue to change.
The framers of the Constitution created the People’s House and, in order
to represent the diversity of our country, so must those who are elected to
represent the people be diverse. I always say I was glad to have been the
first Latina elected to Congress but even more joyful that I was not the
last. It is important to maintain that diversity because it brings new per-
spectives, new points of view, and new ways in which to tackle the
nation’s problems.
As a freshman and a Hispanic woman, I faced challenges in securing a
seat at the table where some of the most crucial and important decisions

vii
viii FOREWORD

regarding our country are made. My goal was to be on the Foreign Affairs
Committee because in my home and my community, foreign affairs were
domestic affairs. The fight for a free and democratic Cuba, my native
homeland, and the importance of human rights around the globe were
daily issues where I came from.
Congressman Dante Fascell, a respected long-serving Democratic
member from South Florida who was the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs
Committee, helped me and persuaded his majority party to increase the
number of members from the minority to add me to the committee. They
added a small desk that looked like it was for an intern, but that did not
dissuade me and I knew that being a part of this committee would allow
me to represent the most important issues of my constituency.
In time, I became Ranking Member and then became the first woman
to chair the Foreign Affairs Committee. That opportunity, originally facili-
tated by a member of the opposite party, allowed me to craft crucial legis-
lation to protect the United States and our interests.
When I arrived in Congress, bipartisanship and compromise were not
only the practice but the pursuit. Unfortunately, and sadly, much has changed.
The partisan polarization of our elected leaders has eroded the public’s faith
in Congress. Today, working in a bipartisan manner and seeking compromise
are scarce traits. With 435 members from diverse backgrounds, educational
and socioeconomic status, the collegiality that I enjoyed for many years is
lacking and should be brought back to the People’s House.
However, one shared objective remains: constituent service. This
should be the top priority for any Member of Congress. It is important to
write and vote for meaningful legislation that impacts the lives of many
but, at home in the district, constituents and their case should be a prior-
ity. By helping that grandmother with her Social Security benefits, or that
veteran to recuperate lost service medals or obtain services at the VA (US
Department of Veterans Affairs), or simply helping constituents to navi-
gate the complex federal system, representatives make a difference that
voters often most remember. This aspect of public service is the one factor
that every Member, Republican or Democrat, can agree on and can excel
at during their time in office.
Running for elected office always requires raising money to ensure that
candidates can get their message out to the voters. Campaign rallies, mail
pieces, media announcements, and so many components of a successful
campaign are dependent on a candidate’s ability to raise money. I ran 15
FOREWORD ix

congressional campaigns and was blessed that the voters saw fit to con-
tinue to allow me to represent them in Congress. The past few years have
witnessed the skyrocketing costs of congressional campaigns. Millions of
dollars are spent by candidates, as well as outside groups, in any given race.
Unfortunately, due to the cost, campaigning and fundraising have become
a constant for any member who seeks reelection.
Campaigns have evolved from traditional mail and media to utilize
every modern communication tool, such as social media and text mes-
sages. This immediacy of information helps a candidate or incumbent to
quickly and efficiently communicate with the voters and the community as
a whole. Voters who are engaged in the process have access to not only
receive information on what their candidate or Member is doing, but also
to communicate to each one their needs, opinions, and views on any given
subject. This two-way communication between voter and candidate or
constituent and Member has served to make that relationship closer.
Every congressional district has its nuances and they cannot be swept
together. A strategy that may work in one district may not be successful in
another. For example, the South Florida district which I represented for
nearly three decades went through several redistricting changes but always
maintained a diverse community and voter registration numbers that were
more favorable to Democrats. The large number of independents regis-
tered in my district also tended to vote for more Democrats. I was not
dissuaded. I worked hard for the people of my community, both in
Washington and in the district, and this, time and again, proved to be a
winning strategy for me.
My experience, however, is not commonplace. As districts have been
drawn and redrawn, gerrymandering has afforded secure seats on either
side of the aisle. This makes many congressional races less competitive.
Both parties become entrenched in certain districts where the lines are
drawn to favor one party. Complacency, however, is the enemy of any
incumbent. Many, as recent as 2018, lost primary elections as new and
fringe voices came into play in both political parties.
When I was first elected nearly three decades ago, the GOP was very
much viewed as a minority party. The Democratic Party had controlled the
House for over four decades. Many were therefore surprised in 1995 when
the GOP became the majority party. In 2007, a comparatively short 12 years
later, the House flipped back to Democratic control. Four years later, the
GOP was back in control. Fluctuating numbers for several years maintained
a GOP majority in the House, but in 2018, it flipped again to Democratic
control.1 The balance of power can truly shift in one election cycle.
x FOREWORD

An individual contemplating a run for Congress may be dismayed by


the financial cost to run, as well as the pressure of performing efficiently
and effectively in DC and in the district, but I can tell you: do not hesitate
if your heart is in it and you are willing to work hard for your community.
If serving the needs of your community is important, then elected office
will allow you to help one case at a time and also help pass legislation that
impacts around the nation.
I encourage more women, more Hispanics and, more individuals of
diverse backgrounds and ethnicities to consider representing their com-
munities, promoting their diversity of thought and contributing to the
fabric of our nation by serving in this esteemed body. Though Congress as
a whole may struggle to keep the faith and support of the American pub-
lic, each member can cultivate their own legacy of service for their con-
gressional district.
The road to becoming a member of Congress may have potholes and
obstacles, but with tenacity and a desire to serve our communities and our
nation, a candidate can be successful. The Roads to Congress 2018 provides
an in-depth look at the midterm elections that, once again, flipped control
of the U.S. House, while maintaining a majority for the GOP in the Senate.
Many Members were unseated in primaries and general elections across the
country. Despite the challenges that both parties continue to face, I have
faith in our democratic system and hope, for the sake of my grandchildren
and for generations to come, that this current atmosphere of polarization,
extremism, and lack of cooperation comes to an end. Instead, I hope for
the return of collegiality, bipartisanship, negotiation, and compromise to
this legislative body, that it can be as it once was, many years ago.

Member of the U.S. House Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL)


of Representatives (1989–2019)
Miami, FL, USA

Note
1. US House of Representatives, Party Divisions of the House of Representatives,
1789 to Present, House.gov. https://history.house.gov/Institution/Party-
Divisions/Party-Divisions/
Acknowledgments

A book always has many hands behind it. This one was edited by the trio
of Sean D. Foreman, Marcia L. Godwin, and Walter Clark Wilson and
supported by 19 contributors along with a handful of students and staff
members that helped. We thank them all for their work.
Sean Foreman particularly thanks Godwin and Wilson for their motiva-
tion to keep this project progressing. He is grateful to his family for their
continued support and for allowing the time to complete this book.
Foreman also expresses his gratitude to Roshavia Williams, a political sci-
ence undergraduate student, who assisted with research.
Marcia Godwin again thanks colleagues, contributors, family, and
friends for their support. It was a pleasure to welcome Wilson as coeditor
and to continue to collaborate with Foreman. Special thanks go to
Foreman for his leadership on The Roads to Congress series and for being a
sounding board on all things related to American politics. Godwin also
appreciates Dana Harsell, Marjorie Sarbaugh-Thompson, and Lyke
Thompson for accepting her invitation to join as contributors. The
University of La Verne has provided research support.
Walt Wilson thanks the many contributors to this project, and especially
his coeditors for including him as an editor. This has been an informative
and rewarding learning experience, and hopefully the first of many future
collaborations. He also thanks his family, Lizzy and Gertie, and the
University of Texas at San Antonio for their ongoing support of his
scholarship.

xi
Contents

Part I Congress in Transition   1

1 The 2018 Midterm Elections and the Changing Congress  3


Sean D. Foreman

2 Toward a More Inclusive Union? Examining the Increased


Diversity of Candidates and Members of Congress 11
Walter Clark Wilson and Marcia L. Godwin

3 Fear and Loathing on Twitter: Exploring Negative


Rhetoric in Tweets During the 2018 Midterm Election 31
Bryan T. Gervais, Heather K. Evans, and Annelise Russell

4 Partisanship in the Trump Era: Situating Contemporary


Congressional Parties in Historical Perspective 53
Douglas M. Brattebo

5 President Trump’s Effect on House Republicans 71


Patrick T. Hickey

xiii
xiv CONTENTS

Part II U.S. House  87

6 California’s 48th Congressional District: Sunset for


Reagan Country 89
Laura J. Brantley and Marcia L. Godwin

7 Florida’s 26th and 27th Congressional Districts: Two


Cuban American Strongholds Support Non-Cuban
Democrats for Congress111
Sean D. Foreman

8 Michigan’s 11th Congressional District and the Anti-­


Trump Wave137
Marjorie Sarbaugh-Thompson and Lyke Thompson

9 Minnesota’s 1st and 8th Congressional Districts:


Riptide—Two Republicans Prevail Against the Blue Wave155
Tyler Godines Camarillo and John D. Rackey

10 New York’s 19th and 22nd Congressional Districts:


The Blue Wave Overwhelms the Red Tide173
Jeffrey Kraus

11 A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing: Conor Lamb, the


Pennsylvania Wunderkind195
Melanie J. Blumberg, Michael D. Slaven, and
William C. Binning

Part III U.S. Senate 215

12 North Dakota Senate Race: A Right Turn217


Dana Michael Harsell

13 A Senate Trifecta: Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia233


Michael D. Slaven, Melanie J. Blumberg, and
William C. Binning
CONTENTS xv

14 Tennessee Senate Race: Call It What You Want, but


Tennessee Is a Red Wall to the South259
Joshua Stockley

15 Texas Senate Race: “If You Want to Run in Texas, You


Can’t Be a Liberal Man”—Beto O’Rourke Challenges
Ted Cruz, and Conventional Wisdom279
Walter Clark Wilson

Part IV Roads Ahead 297

16 Lessons Learned from the 2018 Elections299


Walter Clark Wilson

Index313
Notes on Contributors

William C. Binning is Professor Emeritus of Political Science at


Youngstown State University. He is the coauthor of Ohio Government and
Politics.
Melanie J. Blumberg is Professor of Political Science at California
University of Pennsylvania. Much of her work on parties and elections is
published in The Roads to Congress and State of the Parties series.
Laura J. Brantley is a doctoral candidate in Political Science at Claremont
Graduate University whose research areas include American political insti-
tutions, Middle East politics, foreign policy, and Arabic language and
culture.
Douglas M. Brattebo is Associate Professor of Political Science and
Director of the James A. Garfield Center for the Study of the American
Presidency at Hiram College.
Tyler Godines Camarillo is a graduate student in the Department of
Political Science at the University of Oklahoma.
Heather K. Evans is John Morton Beaty Professor of Political Science at
the University of Virginia, Wise.
Sean D. Foreman is Professor of Political Science and Chair of the
Department of History and Political Science at Barry University. He is
coeditor of The Roads to Congress in 2010, 2012, and 2014 with Robert
Dewhurst, and The Roads to Congress 2016 with Marcia L. Godwin.
Foreman and Godwin also coedited Local Government and Mayoral

xvii
xviii NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS

Elections in 21st Century America: The Keys to City Hall. His chapters on
Florida appear in two editions of Presidential Swing States. Foreman is
Secretary of the Florida Political Science Association, a founder and mem-
ber of Barry’s Campus Democracy Project, and a frequent media
contributor.
Bryan T. Gervais is Assistant Professor in the Department of Political
Science and Geography and coordinator of the Digital Politics Studio at
the University of Texas at San Antonio.
Marcia L. Godwin is Professor of Public Administration and Master of
Public Administration Director at University of La Verne. She is a long-
time contributor to The Roads to Congress series and became a coeditor in
2016. Her research has been published in Administrative Theory &
Praxis, Journal of Public Affairs Education, Policy Studies Journal, State
and Local Government Review, Teaching Public Administration, and
other publications. She also has served as coeditor and contributor,
with Sean D. Foreman, of Local Government and Mayoral Elections in
21st Century America. Godwin provides regular media commentary on
California and local government issues.
Dana Michael Harsell is Associate Professor of Political Science and
Public Administration and Director of the Master of Public Administration
Program at University of North Dakota.
Patrick T. Hickey is Assistant Professor of Political Science at West
Virginia University. His research has been published in Presidential Studies
Quarterly, Congress & the Presidency, The Roads to Congress 2016, and 42:
Inside the Presidency of Bill Clinton.
Jeffrey Kraus is Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs and
Professor of Government and Politics at Wagner College. Kraus’ research
interests lie in the areas of health politics and political parties and elections.
He has published numerous journal articles and book chapters, and
this is the sixth volume of The Roads to Congress to which he has
contributed.
John D. Rackey is a graduate student in the Department of Political
Science at the University of Oklahoma.
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen served as a member of the US House of
Representatives, 1989–2019, from Florida. She was the first woman of
NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS xix

Hispanic origin and first Cuban American to serve in Congress. She was
Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee from 2011 to 2013.
Annelise Russell is Assistant Professor in the Martin School for Public
Policy and Public Administration at the University of Kentucky.
Marjorie Sarbaugh-Thompson is Professor of Political Science at Wayne
State University.
Michael D. Slaven is Professor of History and Department Chair of
History, Politics, Society and Law at California University of Pennsylvania.
Joshua Stockley is Assistant Professor of Political Science at University
of Louisiana Monroe.
Lyke Thompson is Director of the Center for Urban Studies and
Professor of Political Science at Wayne State University. Along with
Margorie Sarbaugh-Thompson, he spent 13 years conducting interviews
with state legislators to study the effect of term limits on Michigan gov-
ernment. They are currently investigating state legislative oversight of the
executive branch in the 50 states.
Walter Clark Wilson is Associate Professor of Political Science at the
University of Texas at San Antonio. He was a 2006–2007 American
Political Science Association Congressional Fellow. His research, which
focuses primarily on the representation of marginalized groups, appears in
journals including Legislative Studies Quarterly, Polity, Social Science
Quarterly, and Politics Groups and Identities. Wilson is author of From
Inclusion to Influence: Latino Representation in Congress and Latino
Political Incorporation in America. He contributed to three earlier edi-
tions of The Roads to Congress and became a coeditor for the 2018
edition.
List of Figures

Fig. 2.1 Probability female candidates filed to run for House in 2018 21
Fig. 2.2 Probability female won 2018 general election by 2016 Clinton
margin22
Fig. 2.3 Probability of Latino candidacy by Latino population of
district24
Fig. 2.4 Demographics and candidate success, 2018 midterm election 25
Fig. 3.1 Democratic candidate for OH-6 responds to critiques of
Christine Blasey Ford 39
Fig. 3.2 Independent candidate for FL-4 responds to President
Trump’s tweet 40
Fig. 3.3 Nonincumbents and negative affect in tweets 41
Fig. 3.4 Incumbents’ use of negative affect by competitiveness 42
Fig. 3.5 Challengers’ use of negative affect by competitiveness 43
Fig. 3.6 Losing and negative affect in tweets 43
Fig. 3.7 Gender and negative affect in tweets 44
Fig. 3.8 Partisanship and negative affect in tweets 45
Fig. 5.1 Win rate of House candidates endorsed by President Trump
on Twitter 73
Fig. 5.2 Win rates of various types of candidates in the 2018 House
elections75
Fig. 6.1 California Congressional District 48 voter registration by
political party, 2010–2018 93
Fig. 12.1 North Dakota reported party affiliation 221
Fig. 14.1 Tennessee Senate polling: Bredesen (D) versus Blackburn (R) 271

xxi
List of Tables

Table 1.1 Congressional results for president’s party in first-term


midterm election, 1978–2018 7
Table 2.1 Candidacy and success in 2018 congressional races,
selected analyses 20
Table 6.1 California’s red-to-blue districts, 2018 election 103
Table 9.1 Minnesota’s 1st and 8th Congressional Districts district
summaries157
Table 9.2 Minnesota’s 1st and 8th Congressional Districts candidate
summaries159
Table 10.1 Voter enrollment by party affiliation and status (NY D-19
and D-22) 174
Table 10.2 New York’s 19th Congressional District results 188
Table 10.3 New York’s 22nd Congressional District results 188
Table 12.1 Candidate financial totals in North Dakota Senate race 228
Table 14.1 Tennessee exit polls 263
Table 14.2 Tennessee two-party presidential vote 263
Table 14.3 Tennessee Senate campaign finance summary 272
Table 14.4 Tennessee Senate election results 273

xxiii
PART I

Congress in Transition
CHAPTER 1

The 2018 Midterm Elections


and the Changing Congress

Sean D. Foreman

Changing Faces in Congress


The roads to Congress were particularly tumultuous in 2018. Both the
Democratic and Republican parties continued their internal battles, while
also increasing their partisan attacks. It was the first midterm election since
President Donald Trump was elected in 2016 to the surprise of many aca-
demics and analysts. Heading into the November 2018 elections, many
expected a referendum on Trump that would result in Democratic gains
in the House of Representatives. At the same time, most saw the Senate as
up for grabs and each party with a narrow margin for error to gain major-
ity control in the upper chamber. Ultimately, Democrats won 40 addi-
tional seats in the House, a form of the anticipated “blue wave,” but also
lost a net of two seats in the Senate.
House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) announced in April 2018 that he
would not run for reelection, relinquishing the Speaker’s gavel. Ryan, 48,
had served in Congress since elected in 1998 and had witnessed his career
goal of tax reform achieved with Trump’s signature on the Tax Cuts and

S. D. Foreman (*)
Department of History and Political Science, Barry University, Miami, FL, USA
e-mail: sforeman@barry.edu

© The Author(s) 2020 3


S. D. Foreman et al. (eds.), The Roads to Congress 2018,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-19819-0_1
4 S. D. FOREMAN

Jobs Act of 2017. Yet, Ryan’s term as Speaker resembled that of his
­predecessor, John Boehner (R-OH), who served in the House from 1991
to 2015. Both were frustrated in the position by intra-partisan disagree-
ments between moderate Republican members and more conservative and
Freedom Caucus members. Ryan’s anticipated departure led Republicans
to jockey for positioning in leadership, creating an odd dynamic for a
majority party in election season.
Most analysts agreed that Democrats were quite likely to gain the
majority and thus control of the speakership. On the Democratic side,
minority leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) was poised to be speaker for the
second time, based on the projections. But, along the campaign path,
numerous Democratic congressional nominees refused to lend their sup-
port, when asked if they would vote for Pelosi for speaker. After some
concessions made and new alliances formed, Pelosi secured the votes to
become speaker in the 116th Congress.
Those concessions, made mostly by moderate Democrats, were facili-
tated by the need to balance a coalition of new members led by Alexandra
Ocasio-Cortez, a progressive Democrat who defeated 20-year incumbent
Joe Crowley in a June primary in New York’s 14th Congressional District.1
It was a stunning idea that a powerful and respected incumbent who
served as Democratic Caucus Chair would lose a primary. But primary
voters saw him as out of touch with the district and Ocasio-Cortez spoke
with a new voice in American politics that was unabashedly socialist and
visionary. The outcome of the race was reminiscent of the 2010 primary
upset of then Republican Minority Leader Eric Cantor by economics pro-
fessor David Brat.2
The win by Ocasio-Cortez was followed by Ayanna Pressley’s primary
defeat of longtime Democratic representative Mike Capuano in
Massachusetts’ 7th District. Pressley ran to the left of the otherwise liberal
progressive Capuano3 and went on to become the first African American
female from Massachusetts to serve in the House. The primary wins by
Ocasio-Cortez and Pressley, followed by several other female and more
liberal candidates across the country, showed that the Democratic Party
would be pulled to the left with their new majority. Like Brat’s defeat of
Cantor in 2010, the nomination of more ideologically liberal Democrats
provided signs that primary voters can be more concerned about the rep-
resentation of activist attitudes within their districts than the power and
seniority of their representatives in Washington, DC.
1 THE 2018 MIDTERM ELECTIONS AND THE CHANGING CONGRESS 5

Mixed Results for Incumbents


Though five Republican incumbents also lost in primaries, and reelection
rates were lower than average, sitting office holders still fared well.
U.S. House incumbents won at a rate of 91 percent in the general elec-
tion—substantial, but still the lowest House reelection rate since the 2010
midterm when 85 percent of incumbents won.4 The 2016 reelection rate
of 97 percent and 2014 midterm reelection rate of 95 percent are more in
line with the norm so far in the twenty-first century. Two House members
and Trump allies, Chris Collins (R-NY) and Duncan D. Hunter (R-CA),
won reelection while under indictment, Collins for insider trading and
Hunter for abuse of campaign finance laws.
In the Senate, the incumbency reelection rate was 84 percent in 2018, the
same as in 2010. This compares to a 93 percent Senate incumbent reelection
rate in 2016 and an 82 percent rate in 2014. Senate reelection rates are typi-
cally lower than those in the House because these competitive, highly cov-
eted Senate seats draw tougher challengers, more resources, and play out in
more diverse and less predictable jurisdictions. The five states where Senate
incumbents lost were Florida, Indiana, Missouri, Nevada, and North Dakota.
Four were Democrats running in states won by Trump in 2016 while, in
Nevada, the Republican candidate lost in a state won by Clinton.
Of course, the incumbent reelection rate does not reflect the number of
retirements or members running for different offices. Beyond Speaker Ryan,
an unusually high number of Republicans—many of them moderates—
either retired or resigned. There were also some high profile Democrats
who were forced to resign. Among them were Representative John Conyers
Jr. (D-MI), who faced ethics charges and health issues, and Senator Al
Franken (D-MN), who resigned under pressure from both Democrats and
Republicans after a photo emerged of him on a USO tour posing as if he
were fondling the breasts of a female colleague and other allegations of inap-
propriate behavior. Senators Bob Corker (R-TN) and Jeff Flake (R-AZ)
announced they were retiring because of their disgust with Washington
politics and became openly critical of President Trump in their public com-
ments in their waning months in office.
Thad Cochran (R-MS), elected to the Senate seven times since 1978,
resigned for health reasons. This led to a special election in Mississippi and
the selection of Cindy Hyde-Smith as the first female senator from that
southern state. John McCain (R-AZ), elected six times to the upper
­chamber and the 2008 Republican nominee for president, died from a
6 S. D. FOREMAN

brain tumor—but not before returning to the Senate to cast the deciding
vote against the full repeal of the Affordable Care Act. McCain gave a
speech and then famously gave a thumbs-down as he voted against the
repeal of Obamacare, defeating the eight-year dream of Republicans and
campaign promises of many of them—also to the disgust of President
Trump who had campaigned on ending the law and who continued to
disparage McCain long after his death.
There were 25 Republican House members elected in districts that
Clinton won in 2016. Eight of those incumbent Republicans decided not
to seek reelection. Democrats won 22 of the 25 districts won by Clinton.
Only three Republicans in those districts were reelected: John Katko (NY-­
24), Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-1), and Will Hurd (TX-23).5
Republican Dave Reichert (R-WA) had won in 2004 and 2008 in a
district carried by Democratic presidential candidates John Kerry and
Barack Obama, and again won reelection in 2012 and 2016 as his district
was carried by Obama and Clinton. He retired rather than face a tough
race given his lack of support for the president and a district electorate that
was trending Democratic. Though he favored repealing the Affordable
Care Act, Reichert was one of 20 Republicans to vote against the American
Health Care Act, sometimes called Trumpcare. That vote, along with rep-
resenting a suburban district, helped to drive this representative off the
road to reelection.6
Despite the discussion of a blue wave by much of the media, President
Trump and Republicans did not do too poorly compared to historical stan-
dard for midterms. The 40 lost House seats were only 12 more than the
average midterm loss of 28 House seats for a president’s party for the period
of 1978–2018. Republicans gained a net of two seats in the U.S. Senate in
2018, while the average is a loss of two to three seats. In this respect, the
midterm elections were a bit anomalous in terms of their outcomes, which
are usually more damaging to the president’s party (Table 1.1).
One of the Republican Senate gains was in Florida, where Governor
Rick Scott defeated incumbent Senator Bill Nelson after a statutorily man-
dated recount. Republicans also flipped Indiana, Missouri, and North
Dakota, while Democrats picked up seats in Arizona and Nevada.

Higher Voter Turnout


One clear takeaway is that civic participation was high for both candidates
and voters in 2018. There was record primary election participation across
the country with more than 46 million people casting midterm ballots.
1 THE 2018 MIDTERM ELECTIONS AND THE CHANGING CONGRESS 7

Table 1.1 Congressional results for president’s party in first-term midterm election,
1978–2018
Year President Party House result Senate result

1978 Jimmy Carter Democrat −15 −2


1982 Ronald Reagan Republican −26 0
1990 George H.W. Bush Republican −8 −1
1994 Bill Clinton Democrat −54 −9
2002 George W. Bush Republican +8 +1
2010 Barack Obama Democrat −63 −9
2018 Donald Trump Republican −40 +2
Average (4 R, 3 D) −28 −2.5

Although primary turnout was still just 20 percent nationally, that was
higher than the 14 percent in 2014 and 18 percent in 2010.7 It was also
the first time in more than a decade when voters cast more ballots for
Democratic than Republican candidates in primaries. There were increases
in voting on both sides, but a more dramatic spike in Democratic support.
This was due to the high level of energy and interest, especially among
liberal and suburban women. Part of the increase in voter turnout was also
driven by more primary races in 2018, with 471 contested House prima-
ries, (274 Democratic and 152 Republican), a dramatic increase from the
152 contested Democratic House primaries in 2014.8
Turnout also increased in the general election. Estimates are that more
than 47 percent of the eligible population voted, with about 110 million
Americans casting a ballot in the 2018 midterms. The midterm turnout
was the highest since the 49 percent rate achieved in 1966 and higher than
the 37 percent in 2014 and 41 percent in 2010.9 Many groups and orga-
nizations mobilized and engaged in electioneering activities in 2018. Pop
star Taylor Swift posted on Instagram her views about the Senate candi-
dates in her home state of Tennessee; there was a significant spike in voter
registrations in the days immediately following the post, although Swift’s
preferred candidate lost.10 Billionaire Tom Steyer’s group, NextGen
America, was also active in voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts
in a number of contested regions. Several analyses showed that more
Democrats voted than Republicans but that should not be a complete
surprise, given that people more often vote against the president’s party in
midterm elections.
The 2018 congressional campaigns also witnessed the most money
raised ever for a midterm election. Record amounts of money were raised
8 S. D. FOREMAN

and spent for and against candidates and for and against President Trump
and his policy positions. It was done through individual contributions,
political party support, and outside groups that are not subject to indi-
vidual limits on political activities. This increase in candidate and outside
campaign spending, along with the strong emotions about President
Trump and his rhetoric and policies across the country, led to uneven and
sometimes uncharted roads for political parties and their nominees.

The Road Ahead


This book examines the changes in Congress as a result of the 2018 elec-
tions and provides case studies of key campaigns from across the country
in four sections. The first section, Congress in Transition, focuses on
evolving changes in American politics. The remarkable increase in female
and minority candidacy and success is the topic of Chap. 2. While the
diversification of congressional membership has reached historical levels,
there are warning signs associated with the partisan nature of that diversi-
fication. Chapter 3 provides an examination of the use of Twitter by can-
didates for Congress. The authors test the roles that partisanship, gender,
and incumbency play in shaping Twitter habits. An analysis of the battles
being waged within and between the political parties is provided in Chap. 4.
The partisanship of the current era increasingly appears out of sync with
historical patterns in American politics. Chapter 5 examines the effect of
President Trump’s relationship to the success of House Republican incum-
bents. The President’s rhetoric about the importance of his support aside,
it appears that his “embrace” was not always necessary or helpful to his
fellow partisans.
The second section provides case studies on several House of
Representatives races, and section three contains cases examining key
Senate elections. Our authors discuss ten House races in six chapters.
California’s 48th Congressional District race is profiled in Chap. 6. This
southern California district was reliably “Reagan Republican” and repre-
sented by Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) for decades, but was flipped by the
Democrats in 2018 along with six other California districts. Chapter 7
examines races in Florida’s 26th and 27th Districts, two of the 25 dis-
tricts that elected a Republican representative in 2016 while being car-
ried by Hillary Clinton. Both were targeted for takeover by Democrats
from the outset of the campaign.
1 THE 2018 MIDTERM ELECTIONS AND THE CHANGING CONGRESS 9

Chapter 8 provides analysis on a Republican held seat that Democrats


flipped due to a retirement and anti-Trump backlash in southeastern
Michigan’s District 11. By contrast, Chap. 9 looks at two of just three
House districts that went from Democrat to Republican hands in 2016:
Minnesota’s 1st and 8th Districts. Chapter 10 examines a high-water mark
for the Democratic wave in New York, the flipping of the 19th and 22nd
Districts after lengthy representation by Republicans.
Chapter 11 profiles the rise of Conor Lamb, a conservative Democrat
who won a special election in western Pennsylvania and then defeated
Keith Rothfus (R-PA) in the only incumbent versus incumbent matchup
nationally. The matchup was prompted by a mid-decade court-ordered
redistricting plan that consolidated parts of their districts.
The third section contains case studies on seven Senate campaigns
across the country. Chapter 12 details the “right turn” taken by North
Dakota voters. They sent Republican Kevin Cramer to the Senate and
ousted incumbent Democrat Heidi Heitkamp. In Chap. 13, the authors
provide an overview of the tri-state region of Ohio, Pennsylvania, and
West Virginia. Each state had a Democratic incumbent senator and each
state was won by Donald Trump in 2016. Each incumbent held on to his
seat, but for different reasons. Chapter 14 examines the campaign to
replace retiring Republican Sen. Bob Corker. Archconservative Republican
“congressman,” Rep. Marsha Blackburn defeated former Democratic
Governor Phil Bredesen in that race to become that state’s first female
senator. The meteoric rise of Beto O’Rourke, a Democratic representative,
and his challenge to another archconservative incumbent Ted Cruz is con-
sidered in Chap. 15.
The fourth section provides an assessment of the 2018 midterm elec-
tions. The concluding chapter examines the themes and lessons learned
from the case studies and research about the campaigns. In addition to
discussing major issues and fundraising patterns that animated the cam-
paign, the chapter anticipates the prospects for cooperation and policy-
making by the 116th Congress and looks forward to the probable dynamics
of the 2020 election. While some anticipated that the 2018 midterm elec-
tion would provide definitive answers about the direction of American
politics in the Trump era, its results have proven to be more a way station
than destination. For better or worse, the roads to Congress and toward a
new American political future continue to be beyond the horizon.
10 S. D. FOREMAN

Notes
1. Shane Goldmacher and Jonathan Martin, “Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Defeats Joseph Crowley in Major Democratic House Upset,” New York
Times, June 26, 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/26/nyre-
gion/joseph-crowley-ocasio-cortez-democratic-primary.html
2. Incidentally, Brat lost his reelection bid in the 2018 general election.
3. Elaine Godfrey, “When Having a Progressive Record Isn’t Enough,” The
Atlantic, August 30, 2018, https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/
archive/2018/08/ayanna-pressley-mike-capuano-massachusetts/568975/
4. “Reelection Rates over the Years,” OpenSecrets.org, https://www.
opensecrets.org/overview/reelect.php
5. “U.S. House Districts Represented by a Republican and Won by Hillary
Clinton in 2016,” Ballotpedia.org, https://ballotpedia.org/U.S._House_
districts_represented_by_a_Republican_and_won_by_Hillary_Clinton_
in_2016
6. Nate Cohn, “Democrats’ Best Chance to Retake the House? 8 Types of
G.O.P. Districts to Watch,” New York Times, June 26, 2017 https://www.
nytimes.com/2017/06/26/upshot/best-chance-to-retake-the-house-
8-types-of-gop-districts-to-watch.html
7. John C. Fortier, Michael Thorning, Matthew Weil, and Joshua Ferrer, “2018
Primary Election Turnout and Reforms,” Bipartisan Policy Center, November
2018, https://bipartisanpolicy.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/2018-
Primary-Election-Turnout-and-Reforms.pdf
8. Drew Desilver, “Turnout in This Year’s U.S. House Primaries Rose Sharply,
especially on the Democratic Side,” Pew Research Center, October 3,
2018 https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/10/03/turnout-
in-this-years-u-s-house-primaries-rose-sharply-especially-on-the-demo-
cratic-side/
9. Camila Domonoske, “A Boatload of Ballots: Midterm Voter Turnout Hit
50-Year High,” NPR.com, November 8, 2018 https://www.npr.
org/2018/11/08/665197690/a-boatload-of-ballots-midterm-voter-
turnout-hit-50-year-high
10. Joshua Stockey, “Tennessee Senate Race: Call It What You Want, but
Tennessee is a Red Wall to the South,” in The Roads to Congress 2018,
American Elections in the Trump Era, ed. Sean D. Foreman, Marcia
L. Godwin, and Walter Clark Wilson (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2020).
CHAPTER 2

Toward a More Inclusive Union? Examining


the Increased Diversity of Candidates
and Members of Congress

Walter Clark Wilson and Marcia L. Godwin

The 2018 elections were historic for producing the most diverse congres-
sional delegation in history. Record numbers of women and nonwhite
candidates ran and won, moving both houses of Congress toward greater
descriptive representation of the American population. Although increas-
ingly diverse, Congress remains a relatively elite institution. The pathways
that lead to greater diversity also reflect a growing divergence in the roads
Democrats and Republicans take to Congress. The increasingly represen-
tative institution thus constitutes a major democratic achievement, but
one that stands alongside a troubling and perhaps deepening parti-
san divide.

W. C. Wilson (*)
Department of Political Science and Geography, The University of Texas
at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
e-mail: walter.wilson@utsa.edu
M. L. Godwin
Department of Public and Health Administration, University of La Verne,
La Verne, CA, USA
e-mail: mgodwin@laverne.edu

© The Author(s) 2020 11


S. D. Foreman et al. (eds.), The Roads to Congress 2018,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-19819-0_2
12 W. C. WILSON AND M. L. GODWIN

One of the more remarkable aspects of the 2018 midterm elections is


that, even in elections leading up to the 116th Congress, there were a num-
ber of “firsts” among those elected to office. The first two Muslim women,
Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN), were elected to the House
of Representatives. The first two Native American women, Sharice Davids
(D-KS) and Deb Haaland (D-NM), were also elected. Davids is also the
first lesbian Native American representative. There were several other firsts
for individual states. One of the most startling was that Texas, with 36
congressional districts and the second largest Hispanic/Latino population
in the country, elected its first Latinas, Veronica Escobar and Sylvia Garcia,
to Congress.1 Other firsts were more amusing than substantive, such as the
election of two Katies, when Southern California Democrats Katie Hill and
Katie Porter each defeated Republican incumbents.2
We examine different dimensions of diversity and representation in this
chapter. We then present an original analysis of candidacy and success in
the 2018 election, focusing on women and persons of color. The analysis
of female candidacies includes primary election candidates, which contin-
ues to be an understudied area of scholarship. We also address characteris-
tics like religious affiliation and sexual orientation, which appear to be of
decreasing importance to voters. On the other hand, the continued rise in
partisan polarization appears to be driving a substantial and increasing
demographic divergence between the parties—with Republicans trailing
Democrats in gender and racial/ethnic diversity. We conclude with a dis-
cussion about whether the 2018 election results are consistent with estab-
lished electoral and societal trends or whether the outcomes have added
significance for our democracy.
Congress, like many American institutions, is often characterized as
being dominated by socioeconomic elites. C. Wright Mills’s seminal 1956
book, The Power Elite, popularized this view. Mills categorized Congress
as part of the “political directorate” with relatively moderate power com-
pared to what Mills saw as the more powerful executive branch.3 Mills
identified the Congress of the 1950s as consisting disproportionately of
Protestants, lawyers, well-educated professionals, and veterans.4 Thomas
Dye’s long-running series, Who’s Running America, has provided updates
on the continued dominance of elites in congressional leadership posi-
tions.5 Richard Zweigenhaft and G. William Domhoff have provided
much more detailed examinations of the characteristics of elites in their
Diversity in the Power Elite series, questioning whether emerging leaders
come from more diverse socioeconomic backgrounds than traditional
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
The Project Gutenberg eBook of Takamaan
torpparit
This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States
and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no
restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it
under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this
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United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where
you are located before using this eBook.

Title: Takamaan torpparit

Author: Nestor Niemelä

Release date: December 4, 2023 [eBook #72309]

Language: Finnish

Original publication: Porvoo: Werner Söderström, 1889

Credits: Juhani Kärkkäinen and Tapio Riikonen

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TAKAMAAN


TORPPARIT ***
TAKAMAAN TORPPARIT

Kirj.

N. Niemelä

Porvoossa, Werner Söderström, 1889.

Oli ihana kesäinen päivä. Ruuhkajärven tyyntä pintaa kulki vene


aimo vauhtia; koskena kohisten sulkeutui vesi sen jäljessä, asettuen
taas entiseen rauhalliseen asemaansa. Tuossa kiiti vene pienen
saaren ohitse, parvi sorsia ryöpähti lentoon rannan kaislikosta,
suuttuneena rääkkyen, kun heidän rauhallisia pulikoimistansa niin
häirittiin; pian he kuitenkin palasivat vanhoille paikoilleen; häiritsijät
olivat ehtineet ohitse.

Soutajina veneessä oli kaksi puoli-ikäistä miestä. Toinen oli pitkä,


vahvaraajainen; muuten sorea ja muhkea vartalo oli, ehkäpä
raskaan työn vaikutuksesta, painunut hieman köyryksi; kasvot olivat
ahvettuneet, mutta sittenkin oli hän kaunis, vankka mies. Voimaa,
kestävyyttä todisti hänen soutamisessa, jokaisella aironvedolla
hypähti vene melkein ylös vedestä. Hän istui äänetönnä, silmät
luotuina veneen pohjaan; selvästi näkyi, että hän oli mietteissään.

Toinen oli lyhyenläntä, heikonnäköinen mies; kasvot, jotka olivat


vielä enemmän ahvettuneet kuin kumppanin, näyttivät iloisilta ja
tyytyväisiltä; hän katseli elämää sen valoisalta puolelta.

Veneen pohjalla, pienellä laudalla istui rinnakkain kaksi iloista,


punaposkista lasta, vilkkaasti keskustellen keskenänsä; ijältään
olivat he noin kymmenen paikoilla, mutta siksensä hyvin varttuneet.

Nämät olivat kaksi torpparia Ruuhkajärven takaa, Hamaan Mikko


ja Mäen Pekka; lapset heidän ainoat lapsensa. He palasivat kirkosta,
sillä nyt oli Juhannuksen päivä. Lapset olivat käyneet ensimmäisellä
kirkkomatkallansa ja paljon erinomaista nähneet tällä retkellään: niin
paljon ihmisiä, niin komeaa huonetta he tuskin ennen uskoivat
löytyneenkään. Tosin olivat vanhempansa niistä heille joskus
kertoneet, mutta nyt he olivat kaiken tuon nähneet omin silmin. Ja
pappi sitten tuolla muhkeassa tönössään: hän puhui niin kauniisti
Jumalasta ja Vapahtajasta. Tosin ei tämä heille outoa ollut,
vanhempansa olivat heitä pienestä pitäin opettaneet Jumalaa
rakastamaan; mutta pappi puhui niin mahtavasti, niin… ja Pekkakin,
Miinan isä, istui siellä kirkossa niin vakavana, eikä ollenkaan
puhunut.

Pekka antoi aironsa levähtää ja alkoi jutella: "Souda sinä, Mikko,


vaan, niinkuin soudatkin, en minä enää jaksa, jää sinulle vielä
sittenkin enemmän voimia kuin minulle huomiseksi, kun kartanoon
menemme. Mutta enempi sinä tarvitsetkin voimia: sinä teet aina
työtä semmoisella vauhdilla, jotta luulisi sinun itsellesi tuota kartanoa
rakentavan. Mutta minun ei auta, jos tekisin päivänkään työtä sinun
tavallasi, niin saisin viikon maata sängyn pohjilla; senpätähden minä
vaan juttelen, lavertelen, teen työtä niin ja näin, mutta miehen
päivästä se aina kuitenkin menee, vai mitä luulet, Mikko?"

"Minä luulen, että sinun työsi hyvin ansaitsee käydä täydestä!"

"Mitäs hullua tämmöinen miehen krapa… Multa katsoppas Kallea,


johan se aikoo ruveta soutamaan! No soudappas nyt isän kanssa,
mutta älä kastele vaatteitasi! Kas noin se vetää kuin aika mies; siitä
pojasta tulee pian aika karhu!"

Kesäkuun aurinko ja raskas työ nostivat pian hikihelmet rotevan


pojan poskille, mutta vähät siitä; lakkaamaan hän ei myöntynyt,
ennenkuin oltiin kotorannassa.

Nyt vedettiin vene maalle, pyyhittiin hikikarpalot otsilta ja lähdettiin


astumaan pientä polkua kotia kohden.

"Tänä vuonna", alkoi Pekka käveltäessä, "meidänkin kylästä


ajetaan nälkä sen pituinen pitkä tie. Menköön nyt tuonne uljaisiin
herraskartanoihin, niissä ei juuri muuta puhutakaan!… Mutta mitähän
sanoisivat, jos saisivat tuommoisen odottamattoman vieraan?"

"Millä nyt luulet nälälle ja puutteelle semmoisen kyydin antavasi?"


sanoi Mikko.

"Milläkö minä nälälle kyydin? Katsoppas vaan tuota lainehtivaa


ruisvainiota, miten se kauniissa ilmassa tuoksuu ja suitsee kuin
palava kytö! Totta kai siitä kerran jyvääkin hellii, vai kuinka? Ja nuo
lehtevät suvilaihon omat sitten! Ei semmoisia nähdä joka vuosi, vai
kuinka luulet?"

"Kyllähän sitä toivoa on", vastasi Mikko, "mutta olemmehan


tottuneet näkemään, että toiveet voivat pettää. Yksi yö voi muuttaa
kaikki."

"Hiiteen kaikki hallayöt, pysykööt nyt yhden vuoden poissakin!


Mutta olisit kuullut, mitä Suonpään Vilppu sanoi, kun kysyin: tuleekos
nyt halloja? Olisit nähnyt, miten hänen kasvonsa kävivät
ilkkuvaisiksi, kun hän sanoi: etkö sitten tuon vertaa tiedä? — En
minä tiedä, vastasin minä! — Hallaa ei tule ennen Mikkoa; vielä olis
aikaa, vaikka ohria kylvää, niin hän sanoi. — Semmoinen minusta oli
kelpo miehen puhetta, ja senpätähden olenkin nyt niin varma, että
meillä tulevana vuonna on kaikkea muuta kuin köyhyyttä."

Näin kulkivat he läpi vihertävän niitun, jossa kasvoi pitkää, uhkeaa


heinää; joku tulen korventama kanto, joku risuläjä pilkistä sieltä
täältä heinän seasta, osoittain, että niittu oli äsken raivattua. Sieltä
saapuivat ruispellolle, jossa hiljainen tuuli liikutteli kukkivia kasveja.
Lapset juoksivat sinne tänne, hakien yhä kauniimpia kukkia, ja pian
oli niitä heillä koottuna melkoiset kimput. Miehet kulkivat hiljakseen,
äänetöinnä katsellen kaunista viljapeltoaan, jonka suurella vaivalla
olivat raivanneet epätasaiseen, kylmään maahan. Hauskahan oli
heidän tuota katsella, mutta samassa ei voinut olla mieleen
tunkeumatta ajatus: kaikki tämä voi vielä mennä pois käsistämme.
Tuota ajatusta ei voinut itsestään kokonaan poistaa ilomielinen
Pekkakaan, liian usein olivat he saaneet tuntea luonnon kovuutta.

Näin saapuivat he Mikon torpalle, joka oli rakennettu metsäisen


vuoren ja järvenrannan väliseen alankomaahan; siitäpä nimikin
Alamaa.

Maa oli luonnon puolesta epätasaista, toisin paikoin kivistä mäkeä,


toisin paikoin vetelää noromaata, niinkuin tuommoiset järvien lähellä
olevat kallioiset maat ainakin. Paikoittain oli täytynyt kaivaa suuria,
sylen syvyisiä ojia, ennenkuin voi maata saada jotenkin kuivaksi;
siellä täällä ojien vierissä näkyi suuria, tulen korventamia
tervasjuurikoita, todisteena, etteivät nuot pellontilkut suinkaan olleet
vaivatta syntyneet.

Vaan palatkaamme tuttaviemme luo! Mikko jo avaa pihaveräjää,


kehoittani
Pekkaakin poikkeamaan hetkiseksi levähtämään.

"En minä sentään vielä ole niin tyyni väsynyt, ett'en jaksaisi tuota
sataa askelta käydä", vastaa Pekka, "mutta eihän tuosta sen vuoksi
mitään erinomaista kiirettäkään ole, eivät lapset kotona itke eikä
taida akkakaan vielä pahoin ikävöidä."

Pihassa kasvaa kaksi suurta riippakoivua. Ne ovat jäännöksiä


metsästä, joka tällä paikalla ennen niin mahtavana seisoi. Vienosti
suhisee hiljainen kesätuuli koivuin lehtevissä oksissa. Tavan mukaan
on nyt Juhannuksena pystytetty pihaan nuoria koivunvesoja, joten
koko pieni piha on yhtenä lehtimajana.

Ison koivun alla istui kaksi naisia keskustellen. Heti pihaan


tultuaan juoksivat lapset suoraan heidän syliinsä, ja olipa heillä
kertomista! Toinen naisista oli pitkä, hoikkavartaloinen,
vaaleaverinen; nuoruuden sulous oli jo hänen kasvoistaan
lakastunut, mutta se tyyneys, joka näkyi niiden joka piirteestä, todisti
sisällistä rauhaa ja antoi niille niin kauniin miellyttävän muodon.
Hänen sinisistä silmistään näkyi viehkeä lempeys ja luottamus
Jumalaan; siitä koko hänen olentonsa sai iloisen vakavuuden.
Lempeästi katseli hän polvellaan istuvaa nuorta poikaansa, joka
lapsellisella tavallaan kertoili, mitä erinomaista oli nähnyt ja kuullut
tällä merkillisellä retkellä.
Toinen oli tuommoinen tavallinen, lyhyenläntä, vahvantykevä
nainen. Häneen ei aika ollut tehnyt suurta vaikutusta; nuoruuden
lystimäiset hymyt eivät vielä olleet kokonaan hänen kasvoiltansa
kadonneet. Hän näytti olevan ikäänkuin luotu kestämään raskasta
työtä, ja työn jälkiä näkyikin hänen ahvettuneissa, tukevissa
käsissään. Hän ei ollut kaunis, niinkuin kumppaninsa, mutta
kuitenkin näki mielellään noita leikillisiä, hymyileviä kasvoja, jotka
suuttuneenakin hymyilivät.

"Kas, täälläpä meidän akkakin on, kelpo akka, kun on tullut tänne
jo minua vastaan", laverteli Pekka pihaan päästyään.

"Sinuako vastaan? Kyllä, kun mokomaa miestä! Mutta mitäs


uutisia kirkkoon kuuluu?"

"Yhtä ja toista, kaikellaista", vastaili Pekka. "Sanottiin vanhan


Jumalan vielä elävän; ukot puhuivat sonnan vedosta,
kertauskynnöstä ja muista arvollisista asioista: akat, sen mitä minä
kuulin, arvostelivat ihmisten käyt…"

"Piisaa! lopeta nyt jo hullut laverruksesi", keskeytti häntä


vaimonsa.

"Mitäs kyselit, totta kai kerroin, mitä näin ja kuulin; mutta


kyseleppäs Miinalta, kyllä se tietää paremmin!"

Hetkisen keskusteltua läksi Pekka vaimoineen ja tyttärineen


kotiansa, joka oli noin sadan askeleen päässä Mikon asunnolta
ylempänä mäellä; Mikko perheineen kävi huoneesen puoliselle.
Tupaa ei koristanut mitkään komeat huonekalut: pari seinäkaappia,
arkku, sänky ja pöytä sekä muutamia tuoleja, siinä kaikki. Mutta
sittenkin näytti se kylläkin sievältä: lattia oli pesty valkeaksi ja siihen
tiputettu tuoreita kuusen havuja, jotka huoneesen levittivät
miellyttävän lemun; seinät olivat koristetut haavan ja pihlajan oksilla,
akkunoille oli kukkia aseteltu vesipulloihin.

Luettuaan rukouksen kävivät kirkonkävijät halvalle, mutta hyvin


laitetulle päivälliselle; tyytyväisyys loisti kaikkien kasvoista.

"Laitappas nyt, Maija, oikein kelpo päivällinen minulle ja tyttärelle",


haasteli Pekka. "Me kyllä tarvitsemme, kun olemme pitkän matkan
kulkeneet."

"No, vartoo nyt nälkäinen, jos jotakin löytäisin", vastasi Maija ja


toimi nopeasti askareissaan.

Pekka oli tyytyväinen, nauroi ja laski leikkiä. Hän ei ikänä


toivoisikaan itselleen parempaa kotia eikä parempaa vaimoa, sen on
hän monesti vakuuttanut.

Jo lähestyi ilta kertomastamme Juhannuksen päivästä.

Pekka ja Mikko palasivat järveltä kalanpyydyksiään katsomasta.


Mukana olivat Kaarlo ja Miinakin, he kävivät miesten edellä
käsikädessä ja kauniit kukkakiehkurat koristivat heidän viattomia
otsiansa. Niin, tässä oli kaksi ihmiskasvia, kaksi erämaan vienoa
kukkaa. Niihin ei koskaan vielä ollut päässyt myrkylliset tuulet
puhaltamaan, niiltä he olivat suojattuna. Tällaisia olennolla saat
melkein turhaan hakea kylän suuresta lapsilaumasta, ainahan heissä
näkyy riehuvan mailman huonoja vaikutuksia.

Iltasella istuu Mikko vaimonsa Kertun kanssa huoneensa


edustalla, Kalle loikoilee pihassa koivun juurella, katsellen
vanhempiaan. Pekan iloinen vihellys kuuluu peltotieltä, kun hän
tyttönsä kanssa kävelee kotiaan kohden, laskeva aurinko kuvastaa
viimeisillä säteillään puitten latvoja, käen ihana kukunta ja rastaan
moniääninen viserrys kuuluu metsästä, luonnossa on suloinen rauha
ja hiljaisuus.

Tarttuen vaimonsa käteen, sanoi Mikko hiljaa kuiskaten:

"Kerttu, oletko nyt onnellinen?"

Kerttu nojasi päätään vanhan miehensä jaloa rintaa vastaan,


sanoen: "kun sinä olet minulla, olen onnellinen, vaikka ei minulla
olisikaan mitänä muuta!"

Käki metsässä kukkui entistäkin kauneemmin. "Onnellinen!" kuului


sen yksiääninen laulu. Ja rastas läheisen aidan seipäässä lauloi:
"Onnellinen!"

*****

Ennenkuin rupeemme pitemmältä kertomaan näiden


metsätorpparien elämänvaiheita, on meidän luotava lyhyt silmäys
heidän entisiin elämänvaiheisiinsa.

Nuoruutensa ajan olivat Mikko ja Pekka palvelleet isonlaisessa


herraskartanossa, siinä samassa kartanossa, jonka maalla heidän
torppansa nyt olivat. Ollessaan kartanossa renkipoikana, sai Mikko
nuoruudessaan lukea vähän kirjallisuutta, johon hänellä oli taipumus.
Ahkera työmies kun oli, sekä sen lisäksi vakava ja järkevä, saavutti
hän pian luottamusta, ja muutaman vuoden palveltuaan sai hän
voudin viran. Näin oli hänellä hyvä asema, hyvä palkka ja häntä
kohdeltiin vakavan, rehellisen luonteensa vuoksi kunnioituksella.
Pekka palveli tallirenkinä, ahkera hän oli ja tarkka toimissaan,
mutta muuten aika hulivili; leikit, laulut ja tanssit, nepäs hänen oikeita
mielitemppujaan. Koko elämäkin näytti hänestä olevan vaan pelkkää
tanssia ja laulua.

Vaikka Mikko ja Pekka olivat näin eriluontoiset, olivat he kuitenkin


mitä paraimmassa ystävyydessä, joka tuli kai siitä, että kumpikin
tunsi toverinsa rehelliseksi ja luotettavaksi.

Vaikka Mikolla kartanossa oli verrattain hyvät päivät, ei hän


kuitenkaan ollut täydesti tyytyväinen: hän halusi omaa vaikutusalaa,
omaa kotia, jossa voisi vapaasti elää ja toimia oman mielensä
mukaan. Hän oli mieltynyt kartanon vanhan muonamiehen tyttäreen,
kauniisen, lempeään Kerttuun, joka useasti kävi kartanossa työssä.

Pian tuli heille selväksi, että rakastivat toisiansa, ja samassa tuli


myöskin oman kodin tarve tuntuvammaksi, muuttuipa se kohta
vakavaksi päätökseksikin. Mikko meni nyt kartanon herralta
pyytämään jotakin metsänkulmaa, jonne voisi perustaa itsellensä
asunnon.

Tuotakos herra kummastelemaan: mikä hätä Mikolla nyt muka


täällä oli, kun teki mieli metsiin korpeen, karhuin sekaan?

Vaan Mikko selitti asiansa niin järjellisesti ja perinjuurin, että


herrakin lopulla myöntyi ja kysyi, minne Mikko aikoisi asuntonsa
perustaa?

"Jos saan olla määrääjänä", sanoi Mikko, "valitsen minä


Ruuhkajärven takamaan!"

"Mitäs hulluja?" sanoi herra. "Onhan toki maata likempänäkin!"


"On, mutta jos saan valita, niin valitsen sen."

Päätettiin sitten asia niin, että Mikko perustaisi Ruuhkajärven


takamaalle torpan ja saisi siellä vapaasti isännöidä; viiden vuoden
päästä piti hänen tehdä kartanoon työtä kaksi päivää viikossa.

Iloisena meni Mikko tuota asiaa kertomaan ystävällensä


Pekallekin, joka ei näistä tuumista ennen mitään tiennyt; vaan
Pekkapa ei nyt tapansa mukaan nauranut eikä leikkiä laskenut,
virkkoi vaan hiljakseen: "Niin sinä sait paikan, mutta minnekkä minä
joutunen?" Pekka kertoili, että hänelläkin oli morsian ja hänkin
tarvitsisi kodin, missä eleleisi. "Ja kun vielä sinustakin täytyy erota",
sanoi Pekka, "ei minulla ole yhtään uskollista ystävää!"

"Jos niin on", sanoi Mikko, "niin onhan siellä tilaa meille
molemmillekin. Jos haluttaa, niin käydään yhdessä kartanon herran
puheille!"

Hetkisen kuluttua palasivat he, ja Pekka hyppeli ilosta — "nyt


hänestäkin jo pian tulee isäntä, ja oivallinen!" niin Pekka tuumi.
Muutaman vuoden kuluttua piti Ruuhkajärven takana oleman kaksi
kartanoa, joissa sopi elää ja herrastella kelpo tavalla! Mikko selitteli,
ett'ei tämä askel suinkaan ollut mikään keveä, vaan että he näin
tavoin olivat antauneet hyvinkin kovaan taisteluun. Mutta Pekka ei
sitä ollut ymmärtävittään, rakenteli vaan omia loistavia tuulentupiaan;
hänestä kävi kaikki niin ihan itsestään.

Seuraavana sunnuntaina kuulutettiin Mikko ja Pekka avioliittoon;


Mikko muonamiehen tyttären Kertun ja Pekka kartanon karjapiian
Maijan kanssa, ja kun keväällä lumet alkoivat sulaa, viettivät he
häitänsä.
Kymmenisen vuotta takaperin siitä ajasta, josta kertomuksemme
alkoi, kajahteli ensi kerran uutisasukkaan kirves Ruuhkajärven
takamailla, joka silloin oli vahvaa metsää, jossa metsän elävät
viihtyivät.

Mikko oli tavallista vakaammalla mielellä, mutta entistä


raskaammin putoili hänen kirveensä ja metsä kaikuili tuimista
iskuista. Hänellä oli nyt työpaikka ja tarkoitusperä, jota kohden tuli
pyrkiä täysin voimin; hän näki edessään monta vastusta, joita oli
vaikea voittaa, mutta vastuksien takana haamoitti itsenäisen miehen
vapaa asema ja hyvä toimeentulo. Ja rymisten kaatui
naavapartainen kuusi ja soleva honka sammaleiseen maahan ja
oudoksuen tuota pakeni metsän peto ikuisilta asuinsijoiltaan,
ihmetellen uusia tulokkaita, jotka toimivat niin kopeasti ja lupaa
kysymättä.

Pekka oli iloinen ja laski leikkiä, kaikki kävi hänestä niin ihmeen
hyvästi ja keveästi; hän huusi ja lauloi, kolisteli kirveellään hongan
kylkeen, jutellen: "Nyt saat sinäkin, vanhus vähän kallistaa päätäsi;
siinä olet jo varmaankin Aatamin ajoista asti seisonut; sepäs on oikia
jättiläinen! Kuules, Mikko! tästä saamme vähällä vaivaa hyviä
sahtitynnyreitä, pohjat päihin vaan, niin on tynnyri valmis, tämä näet
on sisästä onttoa hotteloa!"

Ajan kuluessa ilmestyi peltotilkkukin pienelle avonaiselle paikalle;


risuläjäin ja tervaskantoin palaneille sijoille kylvettiin nauriin
siemeniä. Sekös Pekasta hauskaa: täällä ei pellosta suuria vaivaa:
valkea kantoon vaan ja taas oli valmisna oivallinen pelto. Yönsä
lepäsivät he havumajassa, jota Pekka nimitteli milloin hoviksi, milloin
karhun pesäksi.
Syksypuoleen nousi kallioiselle aholle rakennus ja toinenkin;
vähitellen ilmaantui savupiippu katolle ja Syyskuun aurinko loisti
ikkunaruutuja vastaan. Silloinkos Pekka oli iloinen kuin
uutisrakennuksen savutornista ensi kerran savu tuprusi taivasta
kohden: nythän hänellä oli talo, johon saattoi noutaa vaimonsa ja
sitten asuskella kuin herrat vaan.

Syyskuun lopulla uutisasukkaat vasta varsinaisesti kaluineen


kampsuineen muuttivat Ruuhkajärven taa, ja se päivä oli heille oikea
juhlapäivä. Ensi talven saattoivat he huoletta elää vanhoista
säästöistään, vieläpä hankkia lehmänkin hätävaraksi kyhättyihin
navettoihin.

Toipa Pekka hevosenkin Hämeenlinnan markkinoilta. Se oli tosin


niin huonossa kunnossa, että tuskin jaksoi kävellä, mutta Pekka
vaan nauroi ja ihmetteli, kun sai hevosen niin halvalla. Ja kun
vaimonsa kysyi, mihinkä oli tamman liha joutunut, vakuutti Pekka
kyllä lihaa hankkivansa, hän, vanha tallirenki. Kyllähän oli tamma nyt
vähän laiha mutta luut oli vielä hyvät ja kaikki oikealla paikallaan,
vaikka jäsenet olivat huonossa rasvassa eivätkä sen tähden voineet
liikkua oikein sukkelaan. Näin tuumaili Pekka, vaan toisin kävi; sillä
eräänä aamuna, hänen mennessään tammaansa ruokkimaan,
makasi se hengetöinnä. Pekka nyt Mikolle valittamaan, että tarvitsis
ajoon lähteä, mutta ei saa hevoistansa ylös. "Sitten se lienee
kuollut", sanoi Mikko. "Ei maar', ei suinkaan se kuollut ole, mitä
vielä!" jutteli Pekka.

Yhdessä lähtivät he katsomaan, mikä nyt oli tamman vikana, ja


Pekka kirkaisi korvaan, tömisti jaloillaan, mutta ei se mitään auttanut.
"Ei sen lurjuksen kanssa mikään auta", sanoi Pekka, "pitää mennä
hakemaan Ojanteen Jussia maalaamaan se toisen väriseksi ja viedä
metsän petojen uhriksi koko klona."

Talvikauden valmistelivat torpparit kaikenlaisia kaluja, ja koska


taas kevät tuli ja jäät sulivat, alkoi ankara maan myllääminen; silloin
taas sai moni juurakko siirtyä sijoiltaan ja joutua tulen uhriksi.

Suven kululla lisääntyi molempain torppain perhe kolmilukuiseksi,


Mikon pojalla ja Pekan tyttärellä. Lapset olivat terveet ja täyteläiset,
ja vanhemmat iloitsivat heistä, vaikka tunsivatkin nyt itsellään olevan
uusia velvollisuuksia.

Ja oli uutisasukkailla vähän viljaa uusissa kytömaissaan ja syksyn


tultua korjasivat he pienistä tilkuistaan verrattain runsaan sadon.
Kaikki näytti heille hyvin käyvän.

Nyt kylvivät he ruistakin jo jommoisenkin joukon ja kevääksi oli


suvilaiho-maata kunnossa.

Tuli taasen kesä, uutisasukkaitten vähäiset viljat menestyivät


erinomaisen hyvin. Ilolla katselivat he peltojaan ja työtä tehtiin
enenevällä innolla.

Rupesi silloin, eräänä heinäkuun päivänä, kylmä tuuli


puhaltamaan pohjasesta, taivas selkeni ja kävi vaalean väriseksi.
Levottomaksi kävi uudisasukkaan sydän: mitäs jos nyt halla hävittäisi
kaikki? Pokka kävi iltapäivällä Mikon luo: "Näyttää vähän siltä, kuin
tulisi halla", sanoi hän.

Mikko yskähti tukehuttavasti. "Se näyttää melkein varmalta", sanoi


hän.

"Luuletko", kysäsi Pekka "meidän maiden olevan hallan arkoja."


"Melkeinpä kyllä, sillä tässä on veteliä noroja" vastasi Mikko.

Torpissa ei yöllä nukuttu, rauhatonna kävelivät miehet ulos ja


sisälle, he virittelivät suuria valkeita lähelle sarkojaan; mutta suoraan
nousi savu taivasta kohden, ei pienintäkään tuulen henkäystä
tuntunut ilmassa. Joskus heräsi Pekassa entinen leikillisyytensä; hän
otti suuren seipään olallensa ja kävi pellon pientareelle seisomaan,
sillä muka ajaakseen hallan pois. Mutta hallapa olikin jo tullut hiljaa,
näkymättömänä, ankarana. Pekka heitti seipäänsä pois ja kouri
jäätyneitä tähkiä, joista hieno jäähilse hellisi.

Auringon jo korkealta paistaessa rupesi jää tähistä sulamaan ja


muuttui vesipisaroiksi, jotka välkkyen loistivat kirkkaassa valossa; ne
olivat ikäänkuin kyyneleitä, jotka itkivät uutisasukkaitten huonoa
palkkiota. Kastehelmien kansa putosi tähistä elinmehu maahan ja
auringon ylettyä korkeimmilleen töröttivät tähät, tyhjinä, jyvättöminä,
vaaleina, suoraan taivasta kohden.

Halla oli vähin muuallakin tehnyt tuhojaan, mutta ei niin suuria kuin
Ruuhkajärven takana, sillä märät norot nostivat hallan kahta
ankarammaksi. Uutisasukkailla oli pula edessä, sillä edellisinä
vuosina olivat he kuluttaneet vanhat säästönsä, ja nyt, kun toivoivat
viljaa omistavansa, se toivo petti; rukiit olivat aivan jyvättömät ja
suvilaihon oraat tyyni turmeltuneet.

Vähän apealla mielellä ryhtyivät miehet taas työhönsä. Mikko


rupesi kaivamaan suuria ojia saadakseen maata kuivaksi, Pekka sitä
vastoin hakkaamaan metsää pois ja uutta peltoa raivaamaan, sillä,
sanoi hän: "ojista ei minun ole hyötyä, koska peltoni on
mäkirinteessä, taitaa olla paras, jos laitan vanhatkin tukkoon!"
Kovat ajat alkoivat nyt uutisasukkaille; piti laittaa ruokaa ja
siementä huonona aikana, ja sen ohessa miten mahdollista raivata
peltoa ja niittua kylmään, kovaan maahan, jos koskaan mieli toimeen
tulla. Sen lisäksi raatelivat pedot pientä karjaa, eikä kannattanut
pitää paimenta kaitsemassa.

Toisenakin vuonna tuli viljakato, ei ainoastaan näille


uutistorppareille, vaan yleisesti koko maahan. Silloin nousi viljan
hinta kalliiksi ja työpalkat alenivat; usein ei ollutkaan mitään työn
ansiota saatavissa. Silloin ponnistivat miehet parhaita voimiansa,
ansaitakseen jotakin; mutta raskas työ ja huono ravinto koskivat
kovasti Pekan muutenkin heikkoon ruumiisen, niin että hän vaipui
tautivuoteelle.

Tähän asti oli Pekka tehnyt työtä voimalla, jota ei olisi uskonut
löytyvän tuossa heikossa ruumiissa, mutta häntä elähytti oma
leikkisä, surematon luonteensa, sillä vaikka heidän leipänsä oli
tuskin puoliksi viljasta, söi Pekka aina hyvällä ruokahalulla ja laskien
leikkiä.

"Ei niin kauan hätää, kuin kuorta puussa piisaa", oli Pekalla tapana
sanoa. Multa nyt makasi hän taudin omana, tuskin voiden kättänsä
liikuttaa. Kova koetus oli käsissä.

Mutta vielä käveli Mikko terveenä ja voimakkaana, vaikka vähän


kalpein kasvoin. Ei mikään näyttänyt voivan koskea hänen väkevään
ruumiisensa ja lujaan mieleensä, ei hänen huulillaan koskaan
kuulunut yhtään valituksen sanaa, hänen mielensä terästyi elämän
vaivoissa.

Nyt oli Mikolla kahdenkertaiset huolet; hänen ystävänsä makasi


sairaana, tälle piti hänen hankkia jotakin parempaa ravintoa, mikäli
tämä sitä kulutti; pitipä hän huolta vielä Pekan vaimostakin ja
pienestä Miinasta, sillä vaimoihminen näillä syrjäisillä seuduilla ei
voinut mitään hankkia, varsinkaan kuin oli sairas mies hoidettavana.
Rakkauden voima piti Mikkoa pystyssä, rakkaus omaisiinsa ja
ystäviinsä. Hän tiesi olevansa näille ihmisille kaikki kaikessa, ja kuin
hän myöhään yöllä palasi vaivaloisilta retkiltään, oli aina häntä
vastassa, häntä palvelemassa kaunis hymyilevä olento, joka näytti
olevan niin iloinen ja tyytyväinen. Ja hyvin oli aina laitettu hänen
halpa karu illallisensa ja hän nautti sen hyvällä ruokahalulla.

Talvi oli kylinä ja lunta paljo, työn ansiota ei mistään saatavissa.


Mikolla oli kesällä luistamiansa parkkia, ne päätti hän nyt viedä
kaupunkiin, toivoen niistä saavansa jotakin. Kylästä vuokrasi hän
hevosen ja ajoi kaupunkiin, mutta semmoinen tavara ei silloin juuri
paljon mitään maksanut. Kun hevosen vuokra oli pois luettu ja hän
vielä hankki rohtoja sairaalle ystävällensä, ei paljon jäänyt jauhoin
ostoon.

Jätettyään hevosen kylään ja maksettuaan vuokran, lähti hän kotia


päin astumaan, vähäinen jauhopussi selässä. Hiljainen huokaus
kuului hänen rinnastaan. Kuu kumoitti talvisella taivaalla, tähdet
tuikkivat ja lumi kiilsi tuhansista kirkkaista hilseistä. Pakkanen yltyi ja
lumi narisi astuessa, pohjasen palo soihtuili keskitaivaalle.

Tuolloin tällöin kuului suden kammottava ulvonta, mutta Mikko ei


tuota peljännyt. Hän oli teroittanut seipään kävelykepikseen; sillä ja
vankoilla käsivarsillaan tiesi hän torjuvansa pedot päältään. Kotia
omaistensa luokse paloi hänen mielensä. Hän tiesi siellä löytyvän
kipua ja köyhyyttä, vaikka tosin ei hänelläkään ollut suuria tuomisia;
mutta siellä löytyi sentään niin paljo lempeä ja lämpöä, niin paljo
hyvää ja rakasta.

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