Howie Carr asks: Will anti-incumbent sentiment lead to real change this year?

Are the local Democrats really sweating this fall’s election?

Deval Patrick’s only path to re-election can be summed up in two words: Tim Cahill. And Republicans have good shots at both open statewide offices - treasurer and auditor.

The most interesting Congressional race looks to be in the 10th District, the South Shore and the Cape and Islands. At age 69, Bill Delahunt is slowing down, and lately he’s been accompanied by Joe Kennedy’s namesake redheaded son, who’s usually referred to as Joe Some-Roman-Numeral or Carrot Top.

But really, is this the year for yet another traditional Kennedy Do-You-Know-Who-I-Am Campaign? The Kennedy legacy ain’t what it used to be - just ask Mike Capuano. And now Patches Kennedy is reminding 52 percent of the electorate exactly why they razed Camelot three weeks ago.

Probably better to run Delahunt one more time and hope for the best. If he gets knocked off by Bob Hedlund or Jeff Perry, Carrot Top can return in a couple of terms to take the Republican down, the way the Dems did with the last two GOP congressmen, Blute and Torkildsen.

Next question: How many legislative seats do the Republicans pick up in this angry cycle? If the House hacks were really worried, would they have taken yet another bad vote last week, to ban hand-held cell phones in cars? What, them worry?

Even in 1990, the year of the last Republican sweep, not that many House members were ousted. The real carnage came in the Senate, where the Democrats were carrying the weight of both Bulger brothers. They lost nine seats.

UPDATE: More from the Globe, Herald and AP.

SECOND UPDATE: More from the Herald and AP.