Senate News & Analysis
The post-Nevada primary chorus was loud and clear last week after former state Assemblywoman Sharron Angle won the GOP Senate primary and the right to face Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D) in November.
Everyone seems to think that Reid is measurably better off now than he was…
Democrats and Republicans are each defending 18 seats going into the fall elections, but the national landscape has tilted the battlefield dramatically to the Republicans’ advantage. If the focus in November is on unemployment and the failure of the Obama Administration to handle big issues (e.g., the economy, the…
GREENVILLE, Miss. — Politically interested folks in the Mississippi Delta spent the last few days of May wondering about whether Arkansas Sen. Blanche Lincoln will survive today’s Democratic runoff against Lt. Gov. Bill Halter and whether Democratic Rep. Travis Childers of Mississippi’s 1st district can win in a Republican…
What a really weird week.
Rep. Mark Souder, a socially conservative Republican from Indiana, admits he had an affair with a staffer and steps down from his seat. Squeaky-clean Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal (D) admits he “misspoke” about his military record but says he won’t allow anyone…
The clock is starting to run out on Democrats who would like Illinois state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias out of his state’s Senate race in favor of a more electable candidate.
Given the sensitivity of such a scenario, it’s no wonder that Democrats don’t want to be anywhere near…
With less than six months until voters go to the polls, almost all of the most vulnerable Senate seats this cycle are in Democratic hands — creating an unexpected wealth of opportunities for the GOP, which just 12 months ago was headed for additional Senate losses.
But the…
One year ago, Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter switched parties and gave Democrats 60 seats in the Senate. President Barack Obama and his party were riding high in Washington, and an early batch of Republican retirements gave Democrats an opportunity to expand their majority, even in the midterm elections.
…
This year, it’s harder than ever to distinguish what really matters from what doesn’t. Special situations are adding to the confusion, as is a fickle public, which is showing a willingness to change its positions in the blink of an eye.
In Hawaii’s special Congressional election to fill…
While national political reporters have been focused almost entirely on Kentucky’s GOP Senate primary, Democrats in the Bluegrass State have an entertaining race of their own that raises some interesting questions about money, message, media and November.
The early frontrunner in the Democratic race, Lt. Gov. Dan Mongiardo,…
Democrats weren’t supposed to be worried about Indiana this year, since Sen. Evan Bayh (D) looked like a sure bet for reelection initially, even with a deteriorating national political environment.
But then Bayh shocked the political world by announcing his retirement, leaving Democrats scrambling to find a replacement…