TORONTO – The main attraction of Tuesday’s election may be the fight between U.S. President Barack Obama and Republican candidate Mitt Romney, but the battle to control the Senate is not to be taken lightly.
When campaigning began, a Republican takeover seemed likely, but Democrats are increasingly hopeful of winning control. Democrats control the Senate by 53-47, so Republicans need a net gain of four seats if Obama is re-elected, or three if Romney becomes president.
Recent events seem to have put a damper on Republican chances: frustrated with the gridlock in Congress, Maine Senator Olympia Snowe decided to retire earlier this year, and Republicans are not expected to hold her vacated seat. Then, Richard Mourdock of Indiana followed fellow Republican Todd Akin’s footsteps into some controversial comments about rape.
Take a look at our selection of the top Senate races to watch on Nov. 6, 2012.
Missouri – Todd Akin (R) vs. Claire McCaskill (D)
Bloomberg.com suggested Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill “had been one of the most vulnerable senators seeking re-election this year,” but the key word is “had.” Things changed in August, when her Republican opponent, Todd Akin, said that a woman’s body can prevent pregnancies in the case of a “legitimate rape.”
Though Akin later apologized, saying rape is “never legitimate,” many Republican senators called for his resignation. Akin pledged to continue the race, despite losing money from groups like the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) and Karl Rove’s Crossroads group.
Since the very public removal of funds, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has called on the NRSC to report whether or not they were the source of an undisclosed last-minute ad buy in Missouri that benefitted Akin, according to Bloomberg.com.
Republican Todd Akin and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich address the media on Sept. 24, 2012 in Kirkwood, Missouri. Gingrich was in the St. Louis area to attend a fundraiser for Akin’s U.S. Senate campaign against incumbent Claire McCaskill. Photo: Whitney Curtis, Getty Images
Indiana –Richard Mourdock (R) vs. Joe Donnelly (D)
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If you didn’t recognize the name Richard Mourdock as the state Treasurer who beat longtime, respected Senator Richard G. Lugar in a Republican primary, you may now associate it with the man who followed in Akin’s footsteps, suggesting pregnancy resulting from rape is “something that God intended.”
Will these controversial comments cost him the race in the Republican-leaning state of Indiana? Democrats say Mourdock’s views are out of touch with the state, while Republicans are trying to tie Donnelly to the administration, according to Bloomberg.com. Interestingly, Donnelly also opposes abortion, though he does make an exception for cases of rape and incest or to save the life of the mother.
Massachusetts – Scott Brown (R) vs. Elizabeth Warren (D)
The late Senator Ted Kennedy’s seat is up for grabs, and the battle between Scott Brown and Elizabeth Warren has seen character attacks and racial controversy. Brown questioned Warren’s claims of Native American heritage and consumer advocacy, while Warren defended her background and argued that Brown’s record doesn’t support his claims of bipartisanism, according to Bloomberg.com.
It’s also an unusually expensive race, with Warren raising $12.1 million in the third quarter, compared to Brown’s $7.45 million haul, according to the Financial Times. While Brown was ahead in the polls through the summer, Warren has since closed the gap, and various polls show the candidates within only a few points of each other.
The candidate for the U.S. Senate from Massachusetts Elizabeth Warren speaks to the audience at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Sept. 5, 2012 on the second day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC). Photo: Mladen Antonov, AFP/Getty Images
Montana – Denny Rehberg (R) vs. Jon Tester (D)
Bloomberg.com calls Jon Tester the “most vulnerable Democratic senator” because he’s sharing a ballot at a time when Obama is likely to lose Montana, and he’s up against experienced opponent Denny Rehberg, who regularly attacked Tester for siding too frequently with Obama administration initiatives.
Tester made his own hit by highlighting a report containing details on a 2009 boating accident that involved Rehberg as passenger on a boat driven by former state Senator Greg Barkus, who had a blood alcohol level of 0.16.
Tens of thousands of ads have aired in Montana for both candidates, and polls show the two men virtually tied, though the Financial Times suggests the state has tilted even more to the right in the past six years.
Montana’s Republican Denny Rehberg standing next to former U.S. President George W. Bush during a campaign rally at Metrapark Arena in November 2006 in Billings, Montana. Photo: Mandel Ngan, AFP/Getty Images
Virginia – George Allen (R) vs. Tim Kaine (D)
Both former governors, George Allen and Tim Kaine left office with high approval ratings and now share messages with their parties’ respective presidential candidates.
While Allen accused Kaine of supporting the bipartisan debt ceiling last year, he has since been restrained after accusations of using a racist slur in 2006 causing a narrow loss, according to the Financial Times. The latest RealClearPolitics (RCP) average puts the men within a point of one another, according to Bloomberg.com.
Democratic U.S. Senate candidate and former Virginia Governor Tim Kaine with U.S. President Barack Obama during a campaign event on Aug. 29, 2012 in Charlottesville, Virginia. Photo: Alex Wong, Getty Images
Wisconsin – Tommy Thompson (R) vs. Tammy Baldwin (D)
“Tommy versus Tammy” is what the locals call the competition for retiring Democratic senator Herb Kohl’s seat. Thompson is a former Bush administration health secretary who ran for president in 2008, while Baldwin, about 20 years his junior, would become the first openly gay senator if elected.
The New York Times reports Thompson has been “dogged by his lobbyist past” while Bloomberg.com adds Republicans consider Baldwin’s voting record too party-line. Latest polls put Baldwin slightly ahead, but local Republicans believe Thompson will emerge victorious, according to the Financial Times.
Democrat Tammy Baldwin speaks to supporters at a campaign rally for President Barack Obama at the Delta Center on Nov. 3, 2012 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Baldwin is a running for the U.S. Senate in Wisconsin against former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson. Photo: Scott Olson, Getty Images
With files from The Associated Press
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