Alex's Asteroid Astrology

All politico eyes were turned to the “Old Dominion State” on Election Day 2021, where former Democratic governor Terry McAuliffe sought to regain his old job and beat back a challenge from Republican Glenn Youngkin, a businessman with no prior political experience.  Virginia’s increasingly blue tint, and a 10-point Biden victory margin just last year, not to mention McAuliffe’s earlier tenure of the office, all argued for a stately procession to victory, but in practice, the outcome was far from assured.  Polls tightened in the weeks leading up to the election, with Youngkin showing significant leads in some, but a statistical dead heat in most.

When the dust cleared on election night, Youngkin had won the state, with a two-point victory margin.  In so doing, Virginians reverted to a time-honored trend, typically electing a governor of the opposing Party to that which had won the presidential election the year before.  The only exception to this rule in modern times, ironically, was Terry McAuliffe himself, in his prior 2013 run, after Obama’s successful reelection in 2012.

Both candidates had strong natal connections to asteroid Virginia in their birth charts, suggesting a pivotal role to play for the state in their biographies.  McAuliffe (born 9 February 1957, no time available) sports asteroid Virginia at 7 Aries, semisquare the 20 Aquarius Sun, providing a highly personal identification with the state; and trine Saturn, ruling both career and the office of chief executive, at 12 Sagittarius.  Youngkin’s (born 9 December 1966, no time available) Virginia makes the same contacts, but even more strongly:  at 17 Virgo, Virginia is involved in a T-Square with the Sun at 16 Sagittarius and Saturn at 23 Pisces.

Terry McAuliffe has exact PNA (Personal-Named Asteroid) matches for both names, whereas Glenn Youngkin’s celestial markers are more elusive.  There are several CNA (Compound-Name Asteroids, with first and last name strung together as one word) which begin with Glenn; asteroid Glennmiller, conjoined the Sun from 22 Sagittarius, would seem to be singling itself out as the frontrunner to represent him, by virtue of that solar connection.  There is no Youngkin asteroid but there is a Young; closest to Youngkin, however, might be Yungchuen, and again, its placement conjoined the natal Sun from 23 Sagittarius suggests this is a valid stand-in for the governor-elect.

Youngkin’s victory may be hinted at in a natal Grand Trine Kite pattern, composed of a pairing of Jupiter with asteroid Karma at 3 and 4 Leo, trine an exact conjunction of asteroids Nike (named for the Greek goddess of victory) and Terry at 1 Sagittarius, and asteroid Demokritos (“Democrat”) at 11 Aries, which opposes Mars with asteroid Victoria (Nike’s Roman counterpart) at 2 and 10 Libra on the “string” of the Kite.  This suggests a fated (Karma) political (Jupiter) campaign (Mars) resulting in victory (Nike, Victoria) over a Democrat (Demokritos) named Terry (Terry).

Similarly, Youngkin’s “blocking” energy may be seen in the placement of his PNAs in McAuliffe’s natal chart.  Asteroid Yungchuen at 22 Aquarius conjoins McAuliffe’s 20 Aquarius Sun, suggesting a pivotal role to play in his self-identity, for good or ill, while also squared asteroid Nemesis at 25 Scorpio, a symbol of ruin or downfall.  Further, asteroid Glennmiller at 8 Aquarius conjoins natal Damocles, a harbinger of impending doom or disaster, at 6 Aquarius, in a Grand Cross with a Mars/Terry conjunction at 7 and 8 Taurus, Uranus at 4 Leo, and Neptune at 2 Scorpio.  Together this comprises celestial shorthand for an unexpected or shocking (Uranus) disappointment (Neptune) for McAuliffe (Terry) in a competition or campaign (Mars), a disaster (Damocles) wrought via the agency of someone named Glenn (Glennmiller).

The skies on Election Day showed a potential for a hugely disappointing outcome for McAuliffe.  Although asteroid Terry at 25 Sagittarius conjoined Venus at 27 Sag, a generally beneficial connection, it was also conjunct asteroid Nemesis at 22 Sagittarius and squared Neptune at 20 Pisces, itself conjoined by asteroid McAuliffe at 21 Pisces, suggesting blocks to progress (Nemesis) and a major disappointment (Neptune). 

In contrast, Youngkin’s PNAs, tentative though they are, were in much more supportive positions.  Asteroids Glennford at 27 Scorpio and Young at 0 Sagittarius conjoined Nike at 7 Sag, suggesting victory, reinforced by asteroid Glennsnyder at 11 Aquarius, which conjoined both asteroid Victoria at 17 Aquarius and Saturn at 7 Aquarius.  Asteroid Yungchuen at 5 Capricorn is semisquare Jupiter, arbiter of politics and positive outcomes, at 22 Aquarius.  Asteroid Glennmiller at 23 Capricorn closely conjoined Pluto at 24 Cap, placing Youngkin in a commanding position and opening the door to vastly increased personal power; Glennmiller is also squared asteroid Virginia at 20 Aries, giving Youngkin a real-time connection to the state.

The overarching energy of the day was a T-Square with the Sun at 10 Scorpio, opposed Uranus at 12 Taurus, with Saturn on the fulcrum at 7 Aquarius.  This depicts a focus (Sun) on an element of uncertainty, shock, or surprise, and an unexpected outcome (all Uranus) regarding races for chief executive offices (Saturn), a potentiality further borne out by the nail-biting contest for New Jersey Governor, which at this writing (November 3) is still too close to call, with just a few hundred votes separating incumbent Phil Murphy from challenger Jack Ciattarelli.  The prospect that a Democratic governor could be defeated for reelection in a state won by Joe Biden just the year before with a 16-point victory margin, is indeed disturbing for progressives to contemplate.

So are these races bellwethers or outliers of things to come in 2022?  History suggests the former, with the Party out of power in the White House typically picking up seats in the Midterm Elections.  Democratic majorities are currently so razor-thin in both legislative chambers that it’s hard to conceive of a world where they maintain their grip on all levers of power in the capital.  But that election is a year away, a year filled with unforeseen circumstances, crises, triumphs and defeats, and truly, anything is possible.