Republicans Bob McDonnell in Virginia and Chris Christie in New Jersey captured governor's seats that were held by Democrats. Obama won both states a year ago. He campaigned hard for Gov. Jon Corzine in New Jersey and made appearances for Creigh Deeds late in the campaign, despite some bad blood between the Virginia Democrat's campaign and the White House.
Many headlines Wednesday morning portrayed the vote results as bad news for Obama. "It sends a clear signal that voters have had enough of the president's liberal agenda," Republican Chairman Michael Steele declared.
The White House saw things differently on the morning after the vote. "People went to the polls and voted on local issues, not to either register support for or opposition to the president," Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters.
In every major news organization's exit polls, most voters said the election wasn't about the president. In Virginia, 56 percent told Fox News pollsters Obama wasn't a factor in their vote. In New Jersey, it was 60 percent. The numbers were virtually identical in exit polls done by CNN, MSNBC, ABC and CBS.
Still, there are some clear messages from voters for the president and his party. By overwhelming margins, they told pollsters they're worried about the economy. In hard times, voters take out their frustration on incumbents.
After helping push Obama over the top a year ago, polls showed independent voters swung in favor of Republicans Tuesday. The Washington Post's Chris Cillizza called that an "ominous sign for Democrats." Winning over independents is important for Democrats who want to portray the GOP as a party that's been taken over by right-wing extremists, noted Slate's John Dickerson.
Tuesday's most noteworthy Democratic victory isn't being spun as a win for the president. Bill Owens edged out Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman -- who had the backing of Sarah Palin and Tea Party activists -- in New York's 23rd Congressional District. Owens will be the first Democrat in more than 100 years to hold that House seat. Republican candidate Dede Scozzafava, branded too liberal by Hoffman supporters, quit the race Saturday and endorsed the Democrat.
While The New York Times described Owens' victory as a "setback for national conservatives," RedState's Erick Erickson argued it was a "huge win for conservatives" who mobilized to keep Scozzafava out of office.
The only thing that can be said for certain about this election is that the media will overinterpret and oversimplify the results, Mark McKinnon wrote in The Daily Beast. The former strategist for President Bush said it's not fair, but every election gets interpreted as a referendum on the president -- and so this one will have "very real consequences" for Obama's policies.
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