Are the Republicans storming back towards national power? Or do the party’s ideological divisions doom it to irrelevance? Democrats looking for hope amid the ashes of this week’s elections point to New York’s 23rd district. Not only did they win in an area that had been sending Republicans to the House of Representatives since the 19th century; they also watched the Republicans devour one another. Local Republican Party bosses picked a candidate, Dede Scozzafava, to whom conservatives took an instant dislike. Not only was she pro-choice on abortion; she also favoured, until recently, letting unions organise without a secret ballot. National stars such as Sarah Palin and Tim Pawlenty stuck their harpoons in, urging Republicans to back the candidate of the tiny local Conservative Party. Ms Scozzafava pulled out of the race and endorsed the Democrat, who went on to win.

All this shows that the Republicans are tearing themselves apart, salivate the Democrats. “The most extreme wing of the Republican Party [has] made it clear…that they’re not going to tolerate any dissent,” said Vice-President Joe Biden. Perhaps. Some Republicans do indeed care more about doctrinal purity than winning. “Moderates by definition have no principles,” growls Rush Limbaugh, a talk-radio host, adding that RINOs (Republicans in Name Only) “may become extinct”. Frank Rich, an excitable liberal columnist, gloats that conservatives are “re-enacting Stalinism in full purge mode”.

But steady on. Sure, the Republicans lost a House seat by ejecting a moderate and backing a fire-breather. But they won two much bigger prizes by doing roughly the opposite. Chris Christie and Bob McDonnell, the governors-elect of New Jersey and Virginia, are both social conservatives. But during the campaign, they talked about roads, schools and taxes. In Virginia the Democrat made a huge fuss about a thesis Mr McDonnell wrote two decades ago expressing Cro-Magnon views (which he has now distanced himself from) about feminism. But swing voters didn’t seem to care. A governor has little sway over people’s private lives, but plenty over transport policy.

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