Democrats Play Down Defeat In Polls
US Democrats have played down their defeat to the Republicans in two key gubernatorial races.
The Republicans say the results, a year after Barack Obama was elected, signal voters' discontent with his presidency.
But Democratic Party chairman Tim Kaine said Mr Obama remained popular and that the party's losses reflected voter anxiety about the economy and jobs.
Both Virginia and New Jersey voted for Mr Obama in the 2008 presidential race, but will now have Republican governors.
In New Jersey, the incumbent Democratic Governor, Jon Corzine, was ousted by Chris Christie, while in Virginia, Republican Bob McDonnell beat Democrat Creigh Deeds by a comfortable margin.
Meanwhile, in the race for New York city hall, independent Mayor Michael Bloomberg won a third term.
He saw off Democratic challenger Bill Thompson in a closer-than-expected contest by 51 per cent to 46 per cent.
But the Democrats won a House seat in upstate New York that had been held for decades by Republicans. Bill Owens' victory in New York state's 23rd congressional district, over Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman, followed a contest dominated by fierce Republican divisions.
Correspondents say the gubernatorial defeats are a setback for Mr Obama, who had campaigned in both states for his party's candidates, as he tries to reform healthcare, pass a climate change bill and rally support for his handling of the war in Afghanistan.
In reality the Virginia and New Jersey polls were not simply a referendum on Mr Obama.
Exit polls in both states showed a small majority still approved of how he is running the country.
It is the economy that seems to have been the main concern - that and a host of parochial and even personality issues.
All in all it looked like a good night for Republicans - except there was a sting in the tail.
It came in upstate New York's 23rd congressional district, which has been in Republican hands for more than a century.
Last night it voted Democrat thanks largely to a bitter row within Republican ranks.
It was hardly a good night for President Obama. But it could have been much worse.
Republicans described it as a blow to Mr Obama and said the momentum was now behind them ahead of next year's crucial mid-term elections.
Party chairman Michael Steele said: 'It sends a clear signal that voters have had enough of the president's liberal agenda.'
House deputy Republican leader Eric Cantor said: '[Voters] are tired of the spending, tired of the waste and tired of the over-reach they see coming out of Washington.'
But White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Mr Obama would not consider the defeats as holding a wider significance for himself or the Democrats.
'I don't think the president is looking at these and believes that they say anything about our future legislative efforts or our future political efforts,' he said.
Last year Mr Obama became the first Democratic presidential candidate to carry Virginia since 1964, although its last two governors have been Democrats.
Mr Kaine agreed, saying: 'These races turned on local and state issues... and despite what some will certainly claim, the results are not predictive of the future or reflective of the national mood.'
Meanwhile in Maine, voters in a referendum rejected a same-sex marriage law passed by state lawmakers earlier this year. The law was put on hold when conservatives launched a petition to repeal it.