Republicans Win Virginia and New Jersey Governor Races

Republicans swept to victory in the New Jersey and Virginia governor's races Tuesday, scoring a pair of decisive wins in states that voted for President Obama a year ago.

The Democrats were able to prevent a shut-out, though, pulling out a narrow victory in a closely watched congressional election in upstate New York. Democrat Bill Owens beat Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman in that race.

The Republican victories nevertheless marked a potential turnaround after two consecutive cycles of midterm losses. In New Jersey, Republican Chris Christie beat out Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine, even though Obama campaigned heavily for the incumbent in the closing days of the race and the state has not elected a Republican governor since 1993.

In Virginia, Republican Bob McDonnell beat Democrat Creigh Deeds by a huge margin, heading up a successful GOP ticket. McDonnell's victory ends eight years of Democratic control of the governorship.

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VIDEO: Bob McDonnell's victory speech

VIDEO: Chris Christie's victory speech