Which departing senator will you miss most?

[Calthrina950]

Heitkamp. From 1960 - 2018, there was always at least one Democratic Senator from ND. Looks like that trend has finally been broken.

Speaking of which... I get that Senate elections were less nationalized/partisan in 2004, but still, that something like this actually happened in North Dakota will never cease to amaze me, especially since Dorgan was hardly a conservative Democrat:

Byron Dorgan (D, inc.) 212,143   68.3%    
Mike Liffrig  (R)        98,553   31.7%

George W. Bush (R, inc.) 196,651  62.3%
John Kerry (D)   111,052     35.5%

I’ve never really understood why the Dakotas were so Democratic-friendly at the congressional level for such a long time (both ND and SD had an all-Democratic Congressional delegation not all that long ago, after all).

At least there's still a Democratic trend going on in WV. From 1959 to present, there's always been at least one Democratic Senator from WV. Manchin is still continuing the trend, good for him! But yeah, the main reason why the US Senate DNC trend has been happening for such a long time in WV is due to Byrd serving for 51 years.

The trend in West Virginia will end in 2025, once Manchin completes his final term. After that, I wouldn't be surprised if West Virginia doesn't elect a Democratic Senator again for ninety years.