While many have rightly noted the major Democratic wins in Virginia, New Jersey and California on Tuesday, it's important not to forget that there were key elections in other areas of the country, too. With this in mind, we turn to the Wednesday edition of New York Newsday, in which Rick Brand notes the major shift in one notable region of the state.

The Democrats' dramatic gains in Tuesday's election signal the end of decades of Republican domination of Long Island politics, experts in both parties say.

"The days of monolithic Republican control are over," said John V.N. Klein, a former GOP Suffolk County Executive. "In the past when this kind of thing happened, I'd say give it a couple of elections and we'll be back in charge again. We can't count on that anymore."

[...]

While Democrats Bill Clinton and John Kerry have won Long Island in their presidential bids, local Democrats for the first time Tuesday consolidated their gains -- winning control of the legislatures in both counties as well as the offices of county executive and district attorney.

Those gains come on top of Democrats' control of four of the Island's five congressional seats and the September special election of Marc Alessi to the State Assembly. "Only a few years ago, this kind of thing would have been unheard of and undreamed of," said Hope, an East Hampton resident.

New York state sent 29 people to the US House of Representatives following the 2004 elections, eight of whom are Republican. Of the eight, one represents a district John Kerry won in 2004, and the other seven were elected from districts carried by Bush -- but only with 51 to 56 percent of the vote.

If the trends noted in this article continue, New York Republicans will find it increasingly difficult to be reelected in these marginal districts. And if even the closest of these seats switched hands -- just the six seats in which Bush received 53 percent of the vote or less in 2004 -- Republican control over the House would become extremely tenuous.