GOP Running Against a Stiff Northern Wind
2006-10-16
Source: Los Angeles Times
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rss feedThe political equivalent of a nor'easter is bearing down on Republicans from New England through Pennsylvania.
With President Bush's approval ratings collapsing across the Northeast, the region presents Democrats an unusually rich concentration of opportunities to capture Republican-held House and Senate seats in the November elections.
In this tempest, Democrats are pressing GOP Sens. Lincoln Chafee in Rhode Island and Rick Santorum in Pennsylvania, and mounting fierce challenges to pick up about 10 Republican-held House seats in several states. Half a dozen other House Republicans also could be swept away.
The campaign's atmospherics give Democrats the chance to establish in the region an equivalent to what Republicans have built in the South: an overwhelming regional advantage that anchors their bids for House and Senate majorities. Indeed, if Democrats win most of the House races in play in the Northeast, they will be virtually assured of the net gain of 15 seats nationwide that they need to control the chamber.
On the plus side for the GOP, many of the targeted Republicans are strong candidates.
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