TESTOSTERONE POISONING FAIL

Fail:



Commissioner for agriculture and industries GOP candidate Dale Peterson's Internet popularity did not translate into votes in Tuesday's primary election.

John McMillan and Dorman Grace appeared headed for a runoff for the Republican nomination to the post.

With 61 percent of the vote reporting, McMillian had almost 38 percent of the vote and Grace had 35 percent. Peterson trailed with a little more than 27 percent.

Peterson's campaign ad, "We are Better Than That," brought an onslaught of media attention to the candidate and the state....

Fail:



Rep. Parker Griffith (D), who left the Dem Party in Dec. after voting against most major Dem pieces of legislation, lost his first bid as a GOPer tonight to Madison Co. Commis. Mo Brooks (R), 51-33%....

Businessman Les Phillip (R), who made waves late in the race with an ad that contrasted the African-American GOPer with Pres. Obama, finished a distant third with 16%....

Failing:



Alabama's hotly contested Republican gubernatorial primary ignited into a barnburner on Election Day, with Bradley Byrne making a runoff against either Robert Bentley or Tim James....

Bentley, 67, was the surprise of the night. The Tuscaloosa doctor and state legislator trailed Byrne, James, and Roy Moore in a variety of polls heading into the election. Bentley's low-key style and positive message appeared to resonate with voters....

"The attacking style clearly did not work for the frontrunners Byrne and James," said D'Linell Finley, a political scientist for Auburn University-Montgomery....

James, 48, the son of former Gov. Fob James, surged into contention on the strength of a quirky TV ad in which he vowed to give state drivers license exams only in English....

Congratulations, guys. You got Internet buzz up the wazoo -- and it's quite possible all three of you lost. Call it Snakes on an Election.

I don't want to leap to the conclusion that voters dislike jerks. I think a lot of angry voters really appreciate jerks. But they want candidates to be jerks without seeming like jerks. They want at least a veneer of even transparently phony niceness (that's how Bush did as well as he did for so long).