Shrinking map boosts Democrats in battle for the Senate

[applegrove]

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/06/15/senate-midterms-map-republicans-majority-democratic-incumbents-646183

By BURGESS EVERETT and JAMES ARKIN at Politico


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The Senate battleground map has shrunk dramatically in recent weeks — a net plus for Democrats but not enough to change their status as heavy underdogs to win the chamber in November.

Democratic incumbents look increasingly safe in four Rust Belt states President Trump carried in 2016 — Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, where Republicans are locked in a bitter primary until August. Both parties agree a core universe of states are truly in play: Republicans are targeting Democratic incumbents in Missouri, Indiana, Florida and North Dakota, while Democrats are contesting GOP-held seats in Nevada, Arizona and Tennessee. There is disagreement on how competitive West Virginia and Montana are.

Democrats headed into the election cycle facing a nightmarish map, with 10 incumbents trying to hang on in states that Trump won. While the party is still mostly on defense, the narrower field improves an otherwise grim outlook. Winning the Senate remains a long shot, but is possible if everything breaks Democrats’ way: They need to net two seats to take back the majority, which means protecting essentially all of their incumbents.

“If you look at it … from 30,000 feet up, you’d say, ‘Oh they don’t have a chance.’ When we started there were 10 states we looked at to hold,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said in a recent interview. Now, he said, “there are only four that are really close.”

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[JustAnotherGen]

1. I'm kind of confident

About the "heartland". Trump Tariffs will have severely eaten into their profits come November - not to mention decrease in available migrant workers.

And well - their Senators have proven they are powerless and weak when it comes to 45/140.