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2014 House Overview (April 11, 2014) Iowa - Oklahoma

April 11, 2014 · 3:58 PM EDT

Iowa (2R, 2D). June 3 primary. If no candidate receives 35 percent in the primary, party conventions pick the nominees.
IA 1 (Open; Braley, D). The Democratic field includes former state House Speaker Pat Murphy, Cedar Rapids City Councilor Monica Vernon, former state Sen. Swati Dandekar and…

2014 House Overview (April 11, 2014) Oregon - Wyoming

April 11, 2014 · 3:57 PM EDT

Oregon (1R, 4D). May 20 primary.
OR 5 (Schrader, D). Republicans hope that Clackamas County Commissioner Tootie Smith can unseat incumbent Kurt Schrader, who drew only 53 percent in 2012 against an underfunded challenger. But this is only a Republican long-shot.

Pennsylvania (13R, 5D). May 20…

Meet 3 Divergent House Candidates Worth Watching

by Stuart Rothenberg April 10, 2014 · 9:59 AM EDT

While some observers of politics apparently are only interested in statistical models that predict electoral outcomes, I have always thought that candidates matter — both during campaigns and, particularly, when the victorious arrive in Washington, D.C.

In fact I have found interviewing…

GOP Congressman Skips Incumbent Label on California Ballot

by Nathan L. Gonzales April 9, 2014 · 10:04 AM EDT

California Republican David Valadao is running for re-election to the 21st District — but you wouldn’t know he’s the incumbent from his ballot designation.

In the Golden State, candidates can choose a short description to accompany their name on the primary and general election ballots. The…

Why Republicans Have Trouble Electing Women to Congress

by Nathan L. Gonzales April 7, 2014 · 9:55 AM EDT

Fewer Republican women are running for Congress in 2014, compared to last cycle. That’s a fact. But what it means — or whether it says anything at all about the GOP — is entirely a different matter.

Unfortunately, not every attempt to explain the development is even-handed and analytic.

Mississippi Senator Thad Cochran, Underdog?

by Stuart Rothenberg April 4, 2014 · 9:00 AM EDT

Forget about Matt Bevin’s challenge to Sen. Mitch McConnell in the Kentucky Republican primary or Milton Wolf’s bid to knock off Kansas Sen. Pat Roberts in that state’s GOP contest. The Senate primary to watch is Mississippi’s.

State Sen. Chris McDaniel has the best chance of any…

Nebraska Senate: Peak Timing

by Nathan L. Gonzales March 28, 2014 · 3:00 PM EDT

The first freshman senator for the 114th Congress will be chosen in less than two months.

In Nebraska, GOP Sen. Mike Johanns is retiring after just one term, leaving behind the fourth open Senate seat in the last 14 years. Because Nebraska is such a Republican state, the May 13 Republican…

West Virginia 3: The Ties That Bind

by Nathan L. Gonzales March 28, 2014 · 2:59 PM EDT

Democrat Nick Joe Rahall has been elected and re-elected to Congress 19 times to his southern West Virginia seat. But this November could be different, and his political future is very much in doubt.

As we wrote last May, “If Republicans get a reasonably good candidate, the national political…

Ohio 6: There Goes the Neighborhood

by Nathan L. Gonzales March 28, 2014 · 2:58 PM EDT

Ohio is usually at the epicenter of every election cycle. But after some shrewd Republican redistricting prior to the 2012 elections and a less-than-popular President Barack Obama, Democratic opportunities in the Buckeye State appear to be shifting from slim to none in this year’s midterm…