New York's 23rd Congressional district was the subject of much national discourse this month, as Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, and other prominent Republicans backed a third-party candidate, Doug Hoffman, over moderate Republican Dede Scozzafava. Scozzafava ended up dropping out of the race and backing the Democratic candidate, Bill Owens. Owens would go on to win, finishing slightly ahead of Hoffman.
What makes this particularly signifigant is that this may be a precursor to how the 2012 Republican primary will shape up. Essentially, what we might be looking at is the rise of a third party fueled by the far-right's frustration with the Republican party.
What this means for 2010 and 2012 is that if a third-party cannibalizes the Republican party, then there may be more incidents like NY-23, which is now represented by a Democrat, not having been so in over a hundred years. If this third-party movement gains any more traction, then the Republicans may be forced to adapt their party platform or face losing many of their positions in the years to come.
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