* Poll results are here. Cor Strategies conducted a post-election poll from Nov. 15-18. It’s a Republican outfit, so the object was to find out what went wrong for the GOP and where it could improve. One big point is that Republicans are not viewed as the “governing party” and that has to change…

It doesn’t help that the last time voters gave our party the opportunity to govern, Bruce Rauner and his administration spent four years trying desperately to convince voters our party had no idea what we were doing.

By contrast, Governor Pritzker has focused on getting state government running smoothly, and it’s worked. A 47% to 47% split in the right direction vs wrong track question may not seem great until you look at the trendline and realize this is the best IL has been viewed by voters in this category (by far) over the past decade.

The Republican strategy of screaming “the sky is falling” and “all is lost” is clearly not working. The voters in this state aren’t hyper-partisans or idealogues. They just want things to get done—they’re not interested in the drama and hyperbole. I can’t remember the last time Republicans proposed any sort of productive plan, policy, or initiative that would make people’s lives better in this state, other than simply saying no to bad ideas.

As a result, in Illinois, Republicans are decidedly not viewed as governing material. Voters trust Democrats to govern 49% to 34%. The numbers are worse with moderates, who trust Democrats over Republicans 56% to 21%. Among minorities, the numbers are even worse: African Americans (71% to 15%), Hispanics (56% to 17%), and Asians (51% to 6%).

Throughout the Illinois suburbs and beyond, there are conservative and Republican mayors earning high praise in their communities for leading, as clients in one village put it, by putting “people over politics.” Their communities are thriving and people are moving there to live, work, and raise their families. These are governing Republicans. That’s the model of a winning Republican candidate.

* Crime vs. abortion…

Where Republicans failed (including us) was in making crime THE issue instead of a gateway issue to voters’ real concerns. Crime was never THE issue: it was the 4th most important issue among even conservatives, let alone moderates and independents. But it could’ve served as an excellent emotional issue to gain attention to then paint Democrats as extreme, position Republicans as the more mainstream governing party, and address voters’ economic concerns. We didn’t do that.

By contrast, Illinois Democrats did it right: they used their emotional issue, abortion, to get voters’ attention and then flowed right into their most persuasive issue, painting Republicans as too extreme and a threat to democracy.

* And so the polling company urges Republicans to turn the tables on Democrats…

When asked which party is most extreme, nearly as many Illinois voters said Democrats were extreme (42%) as Republicans (43%). All saying Democrats are more extreme: Hispanics (42% to 39%), Whites (44% to 40%), independents (44% to 35%), and even suburban voters (42% to 41%).

That’s right—even after millions of dollars were spent painting Republicans as extremists while Republicans barely (if at all) fought back, voters are still nearly as likely to believe that Democrats are just as bad.

Independents tell this story best. When asked which party they trusted more to govern, they couldn’t choose between Republicans and Democrats (tied at 29%)—instead, they chose neither (37%). They overwhelmingly believe Illinois is on the wrong track (56% compared to 30% right direction).

Instead of constantly playing defense, it’s time to go on offense. Illinois Democrats hold extreme positions on many hot-button issues, yet Republicans seem to enjoy the Rocky strategy of getting pummeled round after round—without the Hollywood happy ending. And with the Democrats’ elected ranks moving further and further leftward, and their politicians feeling emboldened by record majorities in Springfield, Chicago, and many suburban counties, Republicans are sure to have excellent opportunities to paint our opposition as extreme, which by definition, makes us mainstream. We must capitalize on these opportunities.

This is essentially the same argument put forward by longtime hardcore Republican commenter “Lucky Pierre,” although LP is also a major proponent of the “sky is falling” argument.

There’s more, so click here to read the rest and tell us what you think.