I wrote my first Dangerous Dozen open House seats column in this space 14 years ago, so I figured I might as well keep the streak going, though it isn’t nearly as impressive as Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak. As in my Jan. 17, 2000, column, the districts are listed in order of vulnerability. “All […]
New York Rep. Bill Owens’ retirement gives Republicans another good opportunity to take over a Democratic seat, if they don’t get in their own way. Some GOP strategists may still have nightmares over the special election in this region more than four years ago. But the 21st District might be coming open at just the […]
It’s rare in politics that anything other than a presidential contest is viewed as a “must win” — but the special election in Florida’s 13th District falls into that category for Democrats. A loss in the competitive March 11 contest would almost certainly be regarded by dispassionate observers as a sign that President Barack Obama […]
As speaker of the state House, Thom Tillis is one of the most powerful politicians in North Carolina. But you wouldn’t know it from the Republican’s first ad in the U.S. Senate race. “In the private sector, businesses are built on accountability,” Tillis says. “But accountability is a foreign language in Washington.” He goes on […]
When it comes to running for Congress, age ain’t nothin’ but a number. The special election for Florida’s 13th District is a good example of the broad age spectrum of candidates running for Congress this cycle. Democrat Alex Sink is positioning herself to pick up the open seat in the March special election — three […]
Citing her battle with lung cancer, New York Rep. Carolyn McCarthy also announced her retirement on Wednesday. The Democratic congresswoman leaves behind a 4th District that Barack Obama won with 56 percent in 2012 and 2008 and John Kerry won in 2004, 53 percent to 46 percent. There is a chance that Republicans could challenge […]
The House handicapping whiplash continues. Just days after Pennsylvania Republican Jim Gerlach announced his retirement giving Democrats a good opportunity to win his 6th District seat, North Carolina Democrat Mike McIntyre announced his retirement, moving his 7th District from Pure Toss-Up to Safe Republican. McIntyre has been a consistent GOP target, particularly after the last […]
By mid-December, more than $17.5 million had been spent on TV ads in just four Senate contests: in North Carolina ($8.3 million), Kentucky ($3.5 million), Arkansas ($3.4 million) and Louisiana ($2.3 million), according to a recent piece by Roll Call’s Kyle Trygstad. The numbers are interesting and newsworthy. But it’s important to understand the dirty […]
When it comes to open seat opportunities, Democrats are being handed all the right seats, but they might be coming at the wrong time. Rep. Jim Gerlach is the latest Republican to announce his retirement in a competitive congressional seat. Democrats have coveted Pennsylvania’s 6th District along with districts such as Iowa’s 3rd District, Virginia’s […]
Reporters can be lazy. I know this is a shock for many of you, but I think some of the media coverage of Republican Senate primaries has been somewhat shallow. The short story is that not all primaries are created equal. Senators vary in vulnerability, challengers vary in credibility and outside groups vary in size, […]