I read the article the feeling got was "losing" was used similar to losing a district in an election. Not ownership of the district, but definitely a decrease

I read the article the feeling got was "losing" was used similar to losing a district in an election. Not ownership of the district, but definitely a decrease of the party's (owned) influence and power due to that districts allegiance. Another more mundane analogy, a sports team can lose a player in the say way.