A continued look at last week’s revelation in Politico of the districts in which the DCCC committed to $28 million worth of television buys for embattled incumbents:
Read Part 1 here
MS-1: Travis Childers: Rep. Travis Childers (R) won this seat in 2008 with 54 percent of the vote. Prior to his ascendency, this seat had been comfortably Republican; Sen. Roger Wicker (R) vacated the seat to run successfully for the Senate in 2006. Wicker received more than 60 percent of the vote, and Mississippi’s 1st voted for McCain with more than 60 percent of the electorate. Childers’ opponent, state Sen. Patrick Alan Nunnelee (R), released a June poll that put him 8 points ahead of Childers. The Childers camp called the poll “suspicious,” but objected on the grounds that people “want to hear about jobs,” not polls. This faux substantive objection alone is a bad sign for the Mississippi Democrat.
NC-8: Larry Kissell: A familiar story, Kissell (D) won this district’s seat in 2008. Prior to that, the district had belonged to former Rep. Robert ‘Robin’ Hayes (R) since 1999. Kissell is one of MoveOn.org’s prime targets this year for his opposition to healthcare reform legislation. Kissell was a “no” vote, but his independence from the Democratic leadership in Washington has not translated into campaign cash. With only $300,000 so far, and less than $100,000 raised in the last quarter, Kissell is in need of some national funds. A Public Policy Polling survey released in June had Kissell up by 6 points against his opponent, Harold Nelson Johnson (R). However, Real Clear Politics ranks this race as “leans Republican.”
ND-AL: Earl Pomeroy: Rep. Earl Pomeroy (D), representing North Dakota’s only House district since 1993, is another candidate that is feeling the heat of a “wave” electoral cycle. Pomeroy usually runs unopposed; when he faced opposition in 2008, he walked away with around 60 percent of the vote. North Dakota is a reliably red state in presidential cycles, but tends to be slightly more liberal on the local level. Pomeroy has a well-entrenched local operation to rely on; Pomeroy has $1.6 million to his opponent’s (state Rep. Richard Berg (R)) $751,000. However, Rasmussen had Berg leading Pomeroy by 7points in March.
NM-2: Harry Teague: C&E readers will remember a Campaign Insider Blog that took an in-depth look at the race between Rep. Harry Teague (D) and former Rep. Steve Pearce (R). They are running neck and neck in funds raised (just over a million dollars each) and in the polls (Teague leads Pearce by one point, well within the margins). Pearce is well-known and well-liked, although he ran unsuccessfully for the Senate in 2008. Teague’s local focus has done him a service and he is in a better position than most of his colleagues in this tough cycle for Democrats.
NV-3: Dina Titus: Representing Southern Nevada, Rep. Dina Titus (D) won this district in 2008 with only 47 percent of the vote. Former Rep. Jon Porter (R) had previously held the seat since 2003. Titus holds a commanding lead in funds, besting her opponent, Dr. Joe Heck (R), by almost a million dollars. Titus represents a truly purple district, alternating between Republican and Democrat in the last three presidential cycles. She is just conservative enough to win re-election in this cycle, and a July poll confirmed that she retained a slight (2 point) lead over Heck.
NY-23: Bill Owens: Political observers will remember the NY-23 race fondly. It was the single saving grace for Democrats on the otherwise tough night of Nov. 3rd, 2009 when Democrats were defeated in the gubernatorial races in New Jersey and Virginia. This special election to replace Rep. John McHugh (R) was a three-way race between former Rep. Dede Scozzafava (R), Rep. Bill Owens (D), and Doug Hoffman (C). Hoffman bled off enough votes from Scozzafava to make it a two-way race, even after Scozzafava dropped out and endorsed Owens. Owens squeaked out of that race with a plurality to become the interim congressman. This year, both Hoffman and Scozzafava are in the race for the nomination, but wealthy local Matt Doheny (R) leads the pack in funds. Even after Doheny’s local media buys, however, a poll released by the Hoffman camp showed that he could secure the votes of at least 54 percent of the district.
NY-24: Michael Arcuri: New York’s 24th is a victim of perpetual redistricting. It had sent republicans to Washington since the 1980s, ending in 2007 with independent-leaning, former Rep. Sherwood Boehlert’s (R) defeat. Arcuri won this swing district’s seat in 2006 and has not been a reliable liberal vote in the House; Arcuri has remained true to the 24th district’s independent streak. However, his opponent, local businessman Richard Hanna (R), recently released a poll that showed Arcuri only leading by 3 points. Hanna’s camp also touts a June Rothenberg Report that puts NY-24 in the “Lean Republican” column.
OH-13: Betty Sutton: Rep. Sutton (D) is facing an uphill battle on the money side. Her opponent, wealthy local businessman Thomas Ganly (R), now has over $2 million more in funds than Sutton. C&E previously highlighted the inexplicable nature of this race’s competitiveness in a July 19th Campaign Insider Blog. This is a deep blue district that does not vote Republicans into national office. According to a NRCC poll, Ganley is leading Sutton with 44 to 41 percent of likely voters. This is a nasty time to be a Democrat from Ohio running for national office. President Obama’s approval numbers in Ohio dropped from 62 percent in May to 49 percent in June.
OH-16: John Boccieri: Rep. John Boccieri (D) won this seat in 2008. He represents a right-of-center part of Ohio that votes distinctly left-of-center. In that sense, he may be slightly out of touch with his district. He replaced retiring Rep. Ralph Regula (R), who had been consecutively returned to Washington by Ohio’s 16th since 1973. An independent poll released in May showed Boccieri behind his challenger, James Renacci (R), by a seemingly insurmountable 13 points. November, however, is a political eternity away.
OH-15: Mary Jo Kilroy: Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy (D) won this seat in 2008 with only 45 percent of the vote. Before Kilroy was elected in 2008, this district sent former Rep. Deborah Bryce (R) to Washington for eight consecutive terms. Bryce did not run for reelection in 2008. Kilroy is trailing her opponent by almost $300,000 and has not yet hit the $1 million mark–a bad sign for any incumbent facing a serious challenge. Her opponent, former state Sen. Steve Stivers (R), challenged her in 2008 and lost. Kilroy has spent more than $30,000 on polling, while Stivers has spent almost $20,000, but neither has released the data to the public.
OH -1: Steve Driehaus: The only House Democrat from the western part of the state, Rep. Steve Driehaus (D) represents the recession-hit 1st district that includes most of Cincinnati. Driehaus has been slightly outraised by his challenger, Steve Chabot, who represented the district in the House from 1995 to 2009 and was narrowly defeated by Driehaus in 2008. Chabot wants his seat back; a January poll had the race in Chabot’s column with a 17 point lead. His lead narrowed slightly in May, as Public Opinion Strategies released a poll that showed Chabot ahead of Driehaus by only 14 points. Calling this race an “uphill battle” for Driehaus would be an irresponsible understatement.
OH-18: Zack Space: Rep. Zack Space (D) has held this seat since 2006. He replaced Rep. Bob Ney (R), who held the office since 1995 and resigned after allegations that he made false statements in connection to the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal. Space has been a responsible representative and he holds a more-than-million-dollar advantage over his opponent, state Sen. Robert “Bob” Gibbs (not to be confused with the current White House Press Secretary). Neither camp has released any poll data, but Space is in a much better monetary position than any of his fellow Ohio Democrat incumbents.
Coming In Part 3:
PA: Kathy Dahlkemper; PA: Chris Carney; PA: Mark Critz; PA: Paul Kanjorski; SC: John Spratt; SD-AL: Stephanie Herseth Sandlin; TX: Chet Edwards; TX: Ciro Rodriguez; VA: Gerry Connolly; VA: Glenn Nye; VA: Tom Perriello; WI: Steve Kagen.
Noah Rothman is the online editor at C&E. E-mail him at nrothman@campaignsandelections.com