ICYMI: Three Ratings Shift Towards Democrats
In case you missed it, with Election Day fast approaching, election experts at Sabato’s Crystal Ball have shifted three Senate races towards Democrats!
North Carolina, Alaska, and Ohio have ALL shifted in Democrats’ direction, creating “enough Toss-up races to give Democrats a clearer path to winning the Senate majority.”
The political environment “could be as bad for Republicans as 2018 was, or perhaps even worse.” GOP Senate candidates are being weighed down by their support of a toxic agenda that’s making the affordability crisis worse, and Republicans are still reckoning with embarrassing recruitment failures that have resulted in messy GOP primaries and nominees who’ve “underwhelmed.”
Meanwhile, Democrats have created multiple paths to winning the majority by nominating formidable candidates, running strong campaigns, and holding Republicans accountable for spiking costs and hurting working families.
Before we get to the details, it’s important to note that ratings and momentum alone won’t carry Democrats to victory -- it’s going to take sustained effort across the country. If you want to help build on our momentum and secure a Democratic Senate, chip in below!
Here’s what Sabato’s team had to say about these three ratings changes:
North Carolina
“It’s become harder to give Republicans the benefit of the doubt in a state like North Carolina…”
“it increasingly appears that former Gov. Roy Cooper (D) has the upper hand. There probably was a case, given his history in the state, for starting him out as a favorite as soon as he entered the contest nearly a year ago.”
“Meanwhile, we are somewhat underwhelmed with former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley’s efforts as the GOP nominee… last month, Whatley expressed support for Trump’s “anti-weaponization” fund even as the idea proved beyond the pale…”
“While Cooper, one of the strongest Democratic fundraisers on the Senate map, has handily outraised Whatley on a candidate-to-candidate basis… this may end up as a razor-thin race by Election Day.”
The stakes in this race are clear: While Cooper has dedicated his career to fighting for North Carolina, Michael Whatley is a political insider and former lobbyist who’s only fought for himself and his special-interest backers. In November, we must stop Whatley and send former Governor Cooper to the Senate.
Alaska and Ohio
“The Buckeye State and Last Frontier have long seemed like the most promising targets for Democrats among the list of potentially competitive double-digit Trump states that Republicans are defending in the Senate.”
“In Ohio, Fox News turned heads… with a poll showing Brown up 53%-45% on Husted in the race… despite Husted serving in state government for a quarter century...”
“Peltola has been leading Sullivan in [Alaska Survey Research] polls after Sullivan led last summer, before Peltola was a candidate.”
“We have debated whether both Ohio and Alaska belong as Toss-ups, and we keep coming back to this basic point: If both Peltola and Brown could come reasonably close in 2024 as Trump was carrying their states by double digits, doesn’t it seem plausible that both have a reasonable chance to win in what should be a much better political environment than 2024 was?”
Cooper. Peltola. Brown. These are just some of our candidates who stand a stellar chance of winning their elections in November. The momentum is on our side, and we need to keep building on it. We can’t let Republicans catch up, so we need your support.
If you want to elect candidates like these and take back the Senate this November, chip in below. If you want to stay up to date with what the DSCC is doing to elect Democrats to the Senate, also consider subscribing to our Substack (if you haven’t already!).
– Team DSCC