Edwards probably wins the run-off if he can't avoid it, but it definitely seems like there's some truth to the idea that Democrats like moderate Republicans a lot more than Republicans like moderate Democrats.
This is the crux of the thing. Democrats are mature and are okay with moderate Republicans. Republicans though, refuse to generally vote for Moderate Democrats like the other side does.
I hope you're joking, right ?
Democrats are mature and are okay with moderate Republicans. : Senators Kirk (IL) and Ayotte (NH) agree with this statement
Republicans though, refuse to generally vote for Moderate Democrats like the other side does. : That's why we have senators Tester, Manchin, Brown and Jones in the Senate (and Governors Kelly and Cooper)
1) Ayotte isn't a moderate
2) Manchin and Jones only won because they had terrible opponents (Manchin's was somewhat less terrible, but he had been a fixture in the state for years, and previously won by landslides)
3) OH and (especially) NC are nowhere near as red as Louisiana. Cooper only overperformed Clinton by about 4%, and that's because McCrory was unpopular
You didn't mention MA, MD, or VT, by the way. It's telling that Scott, Baker, and Hogan effortlessly won by double digits in a great year for Democrats, while Edwards might struggle to even win at all. And all of those states are arguably even bluer than Louisiana is red. It kind of goes against the idea that Democrats would trounce Republicans if only they were pro-life.
