On Election Night activists on the left eagerly awaited the resultshoping their hard work in the election would produce a favorableshift in the balance of power in Washington. When the votes were allcounted and Democrats Jim Webb (VA) and Jon Tester (MT) were finallydeclared the winners of Senate seats in two of the closest races,the Democrats regained control of both the House and Senate for thefirst time since the Republican takeover of 1994. As a result of theelection, one set of interest groups would fall out of favor andanother set would find new access on the Hill. Pharmaceutical firms,oil and gas companies, and student loan providers, targets of theDemocrats' populist “100 Hours” agenda and big contributors to theRepublicans, were instantly thrown on the defensive. Anti-wargroups, environmental groups, and labor unions with weak ties to theRepublican leadership and strong relationships with the incomingDemocratic leaders, were newly empowered. As the legislativedirector for one of the largest unions, the American Federation ofState, County, and Municipal Employees, observed a few months intothe 110th Congress, “It's a whole new ball game. Keyleaders on the Hill are much more receptive, and I look 10 yearsyounger.”