This is the district that I live in. Before Carolyn McCarthy was elected to Congress, the district elected a Republican for decades. Based on today's news, I'll be surprised if McCarthy runs again. It remains to be seen if she even finishes her term. " Treatable Lung Cancer " doesn't necessarily mean curable cancer. I recall former Penn St. football Joe Paterno saying that he had treatable lung cancer back in November, 2011. Around 2 months later, Paterno passed away. While Paterno was much older than McCarthy is, it remains to be seen how severe her illness is.
While the demographics of the district are not as favorable as they used to be, I think the Republicans can win back this seat in 2014. Especially if the Nassau County Republican Party makes a strong commitment to the candidate they put up and it's a candidate that the Tea Parties on Long Island are comfortable is supporting. In 2012, the Tea Parties refused to support the candidate the Nassau Republican Party nominated. The Tea Party candidate ended up winning the Conservative party primary, despite the Conservative Party itself backing the Nassau Republican Party choice. The end result is it led to a McCarthy landslide victory.
W/o McCarthy as their candidate in 2014, the Democrats have no one to turn to that can raise the type of money that she has been able to bring in. Not to mention, name recognition. Today's news offers at least some hope for the 4th Congressional District and the overall country.