Not all gloom for conservatives

Despite the Democratic gains, there were some bright spots in yesterday's election for conservatives:

• "Michiganders voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to amend their state's Constitution to ban public colleges and other state agencies from operating affirmative-action programs that grant preferences based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, or gender." See here.

• Seven states (Colorado, Idaho, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin) passaged marriage amendments. Only one (Arizona) was defeated (and by a 49-51 margin).

• While the race hasn't been officially called yet, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty (incumbent Republican) is leading by 14,000 votes. In the 1% of unreported precincts (almost exclusively small and rural), it does not appear that there are enough votes for the margin to get much smaller.