From VOA Learning English,this is In the News.Two American states elected governors this week,while several big cities chose mayors.The elections were the firstsince the troubled launch ofthe new federal health-care websiteand the 16-day partial shutdown of the government.Conservative Republicans in Congress,including Tea Party members,supported the shutdown as part of their oppositionto the program known as Obamacare.Political experts looked at the governors' racesfor clues to how Americans may votein congressional elections next year.Voters will chooseall 435 members of the House of Representativesand one-third of the 100 senators.Observers think the government shutdownhelped Democrat Terry McAuliffewin the governor's race in Virginia.Many federal workers live thereand federal spending is important to the state economy.Mr. McAuliffe defeated Ken Cuccinelli,a Republican with strong Tea Party ties.Mr. Cuccinelli stayed close in the raceby attacking President Barack Obama and the health care law."Virginia understands that Obamacare is a failureand that you want to be in charge of your health care,and not the government."But voters chose Mr. McAuliffein his second try for public office."Just think about what Virginiahas been able to accomplish when we work together."The newly elected governor has close tiesto former president Bill Clintonand former secretary of state Hillary Clinton.In the other governor's race,voters in New Jersey re-elected Republican Chris Christie.He won 60 percent of the vote with the support of many Democrats."Leadership is much less about talking than it is about listening.About bringing people around the table,listening to each other, showing them respect."Mr. Christie received much praise for his leadershipafter Superstorm Sandy hit the state a year ago.Many people see him as a possible 2016 candidate for president.Tad Devine, an adviser to Democrats,says Governor Christie's re-election offers an important lesson."He has been able to take a very Democratic state– Obama won New Jersey by 17 points in the last two elections– and become a governor who could not only win a close electionas he did the first time, but win a landslide election."Ford O'Connell is a Republican strategist.He says Tea Party Republicans need to learn from the winning candidates."Well, it leaves the Tea Party really in an echo chamber,just talking to the base.The real problem for the Tea Party ishow do they expand their appeal beyond the Republican base."Some people predict a battle for the heart and soul of the party. Will the Republicans move toward the conservatism of the Tea Party movement or away from it? Ford O'Connell is not sure."Depending on how this battle turns out,it could lead to more dysfunction and government shutdowns.And that's something that people all over the world have an eye onbecause America is still the most robust economy in the world."In New York City, voters on Tuesday elected Bill de Blasio as mayor.His election put the city under Democratic Party controlfor the first time in 20 years.He replaces Michael Bloomberg.Voters in other cities,including Atlanta, Boston and Miami, also elected mayors.And that's In the News, from VOA Learning English.