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When Democrats look at the 2014 midterm cycle, a few thoughts probably swirl through their heads. ”Can we get the House back?” is probably one of the main ones for your average Democrat but I do believe that the most important question that will be debated by all politicos will be “Will the Democrats retain the Senate?”.
Right now, that question looks 50/50 as the Democrats are all but guaranteed to swing New Jersey back into the blue column this year but seem to be in very precarious shape in the states of West Virginia and South Dakota. Then you add in red states with incumbent Democrats such as Arkansas, Louisiana, Alaska, Montana and North Carolina; it looks it COULD be a year in which Democrats are simply trying to play defense.
Still, if you remain an optimist like I do, you realize that if any voters could annihilate their chances in races they should win, its the voters of the Republican Party. Its highly possible that if the Republican Party had their way; they would currently hold seats in Delaware, Nevada, Missouri and Indiana. Thankfully for Democrats nationwide, that is not the case.
Yet there are two races in which the Democrats could conceivably play a little bit of offense in 2014. There is of course the much anticipated fight in Kentucky between Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes which is guaranteed to get ugly. That race has been talked about since the day after the November 2012 elections when actress Ashley Judd was considered to be the leading candidate. We will talk about that race in the coming days or so as Grimes begins the process of rolling her campaign out.
However one of the most overlooked races in the country could very well be the race in Georgia. We discussed the possibility of how right the GOP primary will be but we haven’t really had an honest discussion over the Democrat’s prospects in the Peach State.
In case you don’t want to read our long article, here’s a quick rundown of the Republicans who have announced their bids to replace the retiring Saxby Chambliss.
- Rep. Paul Broun was one of the first to announce his bid and he has expressed doubts over Barack Obama’s citizenship, Obama’s Christianity but has expressed confidence that the President is a socialist.
- Rep. Phil Gingrey sees Broun’s skepticism on some issues and raises the bar by stating that Todd Akin was “partially right”. What makes Gingrey’s comments slightly disturbing is the fact that he was previously a gynecologist.
- Rep. Jack Kingston seems the least likely to spontaneously combust on the national stage but he has expressed his belief in creationism and denying fossils?
- Then there is Karen Handel who doesn’t currently hold office but you might believe that name rings a bell somewhere. Well Handel was the Vice President of Public Policy at the Susan G. Komen institute and was at the center of a media firestorm when Komen announced they’d sever ties with Planned Parenthood. Now you remember her?
Georgia is a red state, no doubt about that, but its an interesting state. The Republicans are as deeply red as they come but the Democrats do have a presence in the state thanks to liberal hotbeds such as Atlanta and Savannah. President Obama only lost Georgia by a 53-45% margin in 2012 and though that’s in part to the state’s large urban vote, it is still an intriguing result considering the little amount of resources that were used in the state.
Nonetheless, the Democrats appear to be waiting on one candidate and that is Michelle Nunn who is the CEO of the Points of Light Foundation and the daughter of former U.S. Senator, Sam. Given Nunn’s family name and experience as an executive, she offers a very intriguing profile for the Democratic Party and according to her, she will be commenting on her decision shortly.
If Nunn does run, the Democrats then can sit back and watch the Republican Party essentially self-immolate upon itself. Nunn will be able to raise plenty of money I would assume and the DNC would gladly help her in the early stages of the race and possibly later on as the race shapes up.
However what’s most important, after Nunn announcing if she will run or not, is who the Republicans nominate. Jack Kingston is a conservative however he is less likely to go off the rails like Paul Broun or Phil Gingrey (nor will he have the baggage of a Karen Handel) and has been recently touting his No Labels membership. Still trying to be appear the least conservative, or most moderate, in this race may not be the best strategy in a primary.
If Broun or Gingrey win the primary, then the Democrats have a shot to steal a seat based upon the toxicity of the Republican candidate mixed in with the strength of their own. If Kingston wins, then the possibility remains that the state can be flipped blue but it becomes increasingly less likely. The worst case scenario though? If Nunn chooses not to run.
Stay tuned.