Marijuana, Jeanne Shaheen stand out — Washington Redskins name may also be a winner AFP/Getty ImagesYou can now buy or possess and smoke pot in a handful of states.New Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and the Republican Party take top billing, but here are some other candidates and issues that claimed some of the spotlight in Tuesday’s midterm elections.Marijuana Cannabis, pot, weed, reefer, ganja, Mary Jane — whatever you call it, marijuana is quickly moving out of the shadows and winning legal status. Oregon, Alaska and the District of Columbia all approved measures on Tuesday to allow the personal use or sale of marijuana. They follow in the footsteps of Colorado and Washington, which were the first states to offer marijuana a legal haven. Expect more states to legal marijuana in some form in the near future. Democrats have seized on the issue as a way to attract the youth vote, but it’s still unclear if Republican opposition will hurt conservative candidates. Cory Gardner did not support marijuana legalization in Colorado, for instance, but he won election handily on Tuesday against veteran Sen. Mark Udall.Jeanne Shaheen Virtually the only vulnerable Democrat to escape being drowned by the 2014 Republican tide was Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire. Well-known and well-liked, Shaheen fended off a hard challenge from Massachusetts transplant Scott Brown. She worked hard to get out Democrats and, perhaps more important, won the vote of an unusually large 10% of registered Republicans, according to exit polls. That was enough to push her across the finish line, a testament to her past success as governor in the politically divided New England state.Chris Christie The New Jersey governor, a potential 2016 presidential candidate, is getting plenty of praise for his leading role in helping to elect Republican governors. Conservative candidates won big victories in Massachusetts, Maryland and Illinois, typically liberal-leaning states. And Republicans in key states of Wisconsin, Michigan, Florida and Kansas held off tough challenges. As head of the Republican Governors Association, Christie helped to raise money for fellow conservatives and took frequently to the campaign trail on their behalf. Whatever misgivings staunch conservatives have about Christie, he certainly earned some political chits he can use in the future if he does run for president.Larry Hogan The gregarious Republican pulled off the election’s biggest shocker by scoring an easy upset over front-runner Anthony Brown to become the next governor of Maryland. Hogan, the son of a former Maryland congressman who got rich in real estate, earned a reputation as ardent opponent of higher taxes. He formed a nonprofit group in Maryland several years ago to lambaste outgoing Gov. Martin O’Malley for a series of tax increases . He then used his platform to launch his seemingly longshot bid for governor of a state widely viewed as a Democratic stronghold.The Redskins name? Larry Hogan rather publicly defended the Washington NFL team’s use of the Redskins nickname — viewed as offensive by many native Americans and others — and said it was not the business of politicians to get involved in what sports teams call themselves. He also accused Anthony Brown of hypocrisy for attending Redskins games while declaring he would not utter the team’s nickname. In nearby Virginia, meanwhile, Republican Ed Gillespie ran an ad during a Monday night Redskins-Cowboys game one week before the vote attacking Sen. Mark Warner for where he stood on the team nickname. Gillespie, then trailing by double digits in the polls, said he would focus on jobs and the economy and leave it to Washington to decide what to call their team. Though mocked for their stance, Gillespie and Hogan may have benefited politically by defending the Redskins name in two states with hordes of Washington football fans. Polls show 70% or more of Americans think the Redskins should be allowed to keep their name and a majority also think Congress has more important things to do. Jeffry Bartash