Senator Kay Hagan (D., N.C.) could be the Democratic Party’s last best hope to win a competitive Senate race this cycle, even though her lead in the polls is fading. Katrina vanden Heuvel, editor of the Nation (an irrelevant left-wing magazine best known for its unflagging defense of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aggression in Ukraine), thinks Hagan may win thanks to the "populist mobilization" of North Carolina voters against her Republican opponent, Thom Tillis:
Hagan presents herself as above the fray, but she is propelled by a populist mobilization that will help get out the vote, despite the voting changes and despite the off-year malaise afflicting voters generally and Democratic voters particularly.
As a moneyed heiress, vanden Heuvel knows a thing or two about populism and the common man. And nothing screams populism like supporting a massive government stimulus program that just happens to benefit companies owned by your husband, son, and future son-in-law. The Hagan’s saw a six-figure boost to their personal income after JDC Manufacturing, a firmed owned by Hagan’s husband, pocketed taxpayer funding for a solar project.
Predictably, vanden Heuvel also rails against the "deep-pocketed right-wing PACs" that have spent a "staggering" amount of money attacking Hagan. That would be a convenient narrative for liberals, but the truth is that Democrat-aligned outside groups have spent significantly more in the state, according to the Center for Responsive Politics:
Populism!