2010 Midterm Elections

Alabama- Incumbent Republican Senator Richard Shelby is running for reelection. Democratic Birmingham-area attorney William Barnes will be challenging Shelby, but faces an uphill battle as Shelby has a war chest in the double digit millions in a very conservative state.

Alaska- Incumbent Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski will be facing a challenge from Democratic former Alaska Governor Tony Knowles. She is slightly ahead in the polls, but should benefit from the support and fundraising efforts of conservative it-girl Sarah Palin.

Arizona- Republican incumbent John McCain will face a challenge by radio talk show host and former U.S. Congressman J. D. Hayworth in the primary, but McCain is handily beating Hayworth in polls.

State Democratic leaders have said that they were not actively recruiting anyone to run against McCain. Polls show McCain with an advantage of around 30% against any potential Democratic challenger. The only declared Democratic candidate for the seat is Rudy Garcia, the former mayor of Bell Gardens, California.

Arkansas- Democratic incumbent Blanche Lincoln will seek reelection and faces a priamry challenge from Drew Pritt, who is openly gay and is Director of Equality Arkansas. Lincoln is the likely winner of that contest.

Republican state senators Kim Hendren and Gilbert Baker are running for the seat, as well as retired Little Rock Businessman Curtis Coleman, and Congressman John Boozman. All four men are polling well ahead of Lincoln. The primaries will be held on May 18, 2010

California-Read our in-depth article on this race here

Colorado- Former Democratic Senator Ken Salazar vacated the seat to rise to the post of Secretary of the Interior. Michael Bennet was selected to fill the seat and he has chosen to run for reelection. He will face a primary challenge from former Speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives Andrew Romanoff.

Former Lieutenant Governor Jane Norton, Weld County District Attorney Ken Buck and former state Senator Tom Weins are all in the race for the Republican nominations for the seat.  Norton is the only potential Republican candidate that has beaten Bennet in the polls.

Connecticut- Democratic incumbent Christopher Dodd announced on Jan 6, 2010, that he is not running for reelection, enhanced by his grim prospects for reelection. Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal will run for the seat for the Democratic Party and is expected to be a strong candidate.

On the Republican side, noted financial pundit and libertarian Peter Schiff is running for the seat, but is considered to be far behind former U. S. Congressman Rob Simmons and Linda McMahon, former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment, in the polls. The primary is scheduled for August 10, 2010.

Delaware- The Senate seat formerly held by Joe Biden prior to his elevation to the Vice-Presidency is currently being held by Ted Kaufman. Kaufman has decided not to run for reelection. Popular former Republican Governor and U.S. Representative Mike Castle is the runaway favorite for the seat, but is facing a primary challenge from the 2002 Republican Senate nominee Christine O’Donnell.

Beau Biden, the current Attorney General of Delaware and the son of Joe Biden has been mentioned as a Democratic candidate, but has declined. The likely candidate will be Newcastle County Executive Chris Coons.

Florida- Republican Senator Mel Martinez resigned early from his Senate seat and named George LeMieux as his successor. LeMieux has decided not to run. The heavy favorite, incumbent Republican Governor Charlie Crist is in an unexpected race with former Republican Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives Marco Rubio for the Republican nomination.

U.S. Representative Kendrick Meek is considered the frontrunner for the Democratic the primary, since his strongest competition has declined to run. Meek trails both Rubio and Crist considerably in the polls.

Georgia- Incumbent Senator Republican Johnny Isakson is popular in his home state, but is potentially facing a primary challenge from U.S. Representative Paul Broun. Whoever wins the Republican nomination is considered a veritable shoe-in in the conservative state.

Democrat R. J. Hadley, chief of staff to the Rockdale County Commission, will be the likely challenger.

Hawaii- Incumbent Democratic Senator Daniel Inouye will be running for his ninth term and has no announced opposition; though outgoing Republican Governor Linda Lingle has been mentioned as a possible Republican candidate.

Idaho- Incumbent Republican Senator Mike Crapo faced only token write-in opposition during his last run in 2004, but Democrat William Bryk has filed paperwork to mount a challenge. Crapo’s seat is considered the safest Republican seat in the 2010 election.

Illinoise- Read our in-depth article on this race here

Indiana- On February 15, 2010, popular Democratic incumbent Evan Bayh announced his intention to step down from his seat at the end of his term. U.S. Representative Brad Ellsworth is considered the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination, but is trailing in the polls behind all three of the frontrunners for the Republican nomination.

Former US Senator Daniel Coats has come out of retirement to pursue the Republican nomination. Former Congressman John Hostettler and State Senator Marlin A. Stutzman are also running for the Republican nomination.

Iowa- Incumbent Republican senator Chuck Grassley has wobbly ratings, but does not currently have a legitimate challenger for the Republican primary. Grassley is beating all top Democratic challengers by 20-30% in polls.

Former gubernatorial candidate Roxanne Conlin, former State Representative Bob Krause and former State Senator Tom Fiegen are all running for the Democratic nomination.

Kansas- Incumbent Republican Senator Sam Brownback is not running for reelection due to self-imposed term limits. U.S. Representatives Jerry Moran and Todd Tiahrt have both announced their candidacies, setting the stage for a tough fight between two strong candidates in the Republican primary. Whoever wins the primary is expected to win the seat.

Grassroots candidate, retired advertising executive Charles Schollenberger, will be the Democratic nominee for the seat.

Kentucky- Incumbent Republican Senator Jim Bunning has announced that he will be retiring at the end of this term. Kentucky Secretary of State Trey Grayson and Rand Paul, son of popular U.S. Representative Ron Paul, have both entered the Republican primary race.

Lieutenant Governor Daniel Mongiardo and state Attorney General Jack Conway will battle it out for the Democratic primary. Both have a great deal of support form prominent state Democrats. Primaries for both parties will be held on May 18, 2010,

Louisiana- Despite an embarrassing prostitution scandal, incumbent Republican Senator David Vitters has decided to seek reelection. He currently leads the Senate race polls by around 20%.

He will likely face Democratic challenger Charlie Melancon, a well-regarded “Blue Dog” U.S. Representative.

Maryland- Popular incumbent Democratic Senator Barbara Mikulski has never been elected with less than a 21 percent margin in any of her four Senate races.

Due to her popularity, the Republicans have not announced a strong Republican primary candidate. Political consultant Corrogan Vaughn, physician and Queen Anne’s County Commission president Eric Wargotz, have announced their candidacies, along with attorney Jim Rutledge III.

Missouri- Incumbent Republican Senator Kit Bond has decided to retire at the end of the present term. U.S. Representative Roy Blunt and state senator Chuck Purgason have declared themselves candidates for the Republican nomination.

They face a very tough challenger in Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan, who is the daughter of former U.S. Senator Jean Carnahan and former Governor Mel Carnahan. She currently leads in the polls against either Republican challenger.

New Hampshire- Incumbent Republican senator Judd Gregg has decided not to seek reelection. State Attorney General Kelly Ayotte is the likely Republican nominee for his Senate seat and is currently leading in the polls by a slim margin.

Democratic U.S. Representative Paul Hodes is running basically unopposed for the Democratic nomination for this seat.

New York- Incumbent Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand was appointed to fill the seat vacated by former Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton after her appointment as U.S. Secretary of State. Gillibrand is running for reelection in a special election to fill the term until 2012.

Former Republican Governor George Pataki has been repeatedly mentioned as a candidate for the Republican nomination and is the only one who consistently beats Gillibrand in the polls. Port Authority Commissioner Bruce Blakeman has declared his candidacy, but Congressman Peter T. King and publisher Mort Zuckerman have both expressed entering the Republican primary.

New York- Popular incumbent Democrat Chuck Schumer is not likely to face a strong challenger. With both Senate seats and the Governorship up for grabs in 2010, the GOP has chosen to focus on the other races where the candidates are not as strong.

Martin Chicon, candidate for New York Senate in 2008, has announced a run as the Republican challenger.

North Carolina-Incumbent Republican Senator Richard Burr is currently beating all likely opponents in the polls, but no incumbent has won reelection for this seat 1968. He has a 10 point lead on the leading Democratic challenger in recent polls.

North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall is currently leading in the polls against fellow Democratic primary challengers, attorney Ken Lewis and former state senator Cal Cunningham. The primary date is May 4, 2010.

North Dakota- Incumbent Democratic Senator Byron Dorgan announced on January 5, 2010 that he will not run for reelection. State Senator Tracy Potter has announced her candidacy, but trails in the polls to Republican challenger North Dakota Governor John Hoeven by as much as a 50 percent margin. Former state Attorney General Heidi Heitkamp, who ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2000, has been named as a possible candidate and fares better against Hoeven, but stills trails him considerably in polls.

Ohio- Longtime Republican stalwart, Senator George Voinovich has decided to retire and not seek reelection. Former U.S. Representative Rob Portman looks to be the likely Republican nominee to replace Voinovich, but does have a primary challenger, businessman Tom Ganley.

On the Democratic side, Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner and Lieutenant Governor Lee Fisher are the frontrunners in the Democratic primary. Fisher is showing stronger in the primary polls, but both show equally as well in the general election polls versus Portman, who holds a very narrow lead. Both parties will hold their primaries on May 4, 2010

Oklahoma- Incumbent Republican Senator Tom Coburn is running for reelection in a deep-red state. The Democratic Party does not have a strong committed challenger at this time, though former Congressman Brad Carson and current governor Brad Henry are mentioned as potential candidates. Neither has shown a strong interest in running.

However, the filing deadline for candidates is not until June 1 and the primaries take place on July 27, 2010.

Oregon- Incumbent Democratic Senator Ron Wyden is facing a repeat challenge from likely Republican nominee Jim Huffman, a law professor. In 2004, Wyden beat Huffman by a 2-1 margin. Entrepreneur and technologist Kareem Hamdy will face Huffman in the Republican primary.

Pennsylvania- Now Democrat incumbent Senator Arlen Specter will be running for reelection for the first time since switching parties. He will be challenged in the primaries by U.S. Representative Joe Sestak, who also happens to be a retired U.S. Navy Rear Admiral. Specter should be safe, since he is leading in the primary polls and has the support of the party leadership.

Pat Toomey, former U.S. Representative and former President of the Club for Growth Pat Toomey, is the leading candidate for the Republican nomination. He narrowly missed trouncing Specter in the 2004 Republican primary. He holds a slim lead over both Democratic candidates in the polls. Former Constitution Party gubernatorial candidate Peg Luksik is running against him in the primary. Both parties will hold their primaries on May 18.

South Carolina- Incumbent Republican Senator Jim DeMint is running for a second term with little expected competition, as both the Democrats and Republicans have chosen to focus on the race for governor.

Summerville retiree Mike Ruckes is the only announced candidate, but U.S Rep and House Majority Whip James Clyburn, gubernatorial candidate Mullins McLeod and State Superidendent Jim Rex have been mentioned as possible candidates for the Democratic nomination.

South Dakota- Popular incumbent Republican Senator John Thune ousted Democratic Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle in 2004 after a close race that stunned political observers. No one has stepped up from the Democrats to challenge Thune, who has been floated as a potential 2012 presidential candidate. The candidate filing deadline is March 30, 2010.

Utah- Incumbent Republican Senator Bob Bennett is expected to run for re-election, but may face stiff primary opposition from more conservative candidates. Bennett is known as one of the most liberal Republicans in the Senate. Constitutional attorney Mike Lee, former congressional candidate Tim Bridgewater and businesswoman Cherilyn Eagar have all announced their candidacy for the Republican nomination. Along with potential candidate David Leavitt, a former Juab County prosecutor, they will make for a stiff race for the party nod.

The two main Democrats running in the primary are businessman and CEO Sam Granato and accountant Christopher Stout. It is likely that whoever wins the Republican nomination will win the seat.

Vermont- Incumbent Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy will run for reelection. Though he faces a primary challenge from physician Daniel Freilich, it is unlikely that he will lose the primary.

Len Britton is the likely Republican challenger and two independent candidates have announced that they will run. In a state where third-party candidates have had a viable presence, cannabis legal reform activist Cris Ericson and John A. LaPierre may make a showing. It is doubtful that anyone will beat Leahy, who took home 71% of the vote in his 2004 reelection bid.

Washington- Incumbent Democratic Senator Patty Murray will seek reelection. She does not have any credible primary competition.

While U.S. Representative U.S. Representative Dave Reichert, state senator Don Benton, motivational speaker Chris Widener and former pro football player Clint Didier have all declared their run for the Republican primary, the only Republican who is beating Murray in the polls is an undeclared candidate. Dino Rossi, former state senator and gubernatorial candidate, is the only one that currently seems to have a chance of knocking Murray out of the seat, according to polls.

Wisconsin- Popular incumbent Democrat Russ Feingold is likely to run for reelection and is known for his past bi-partisanship on many issues, including campaign finance reform. He has no major primary opposition.
The Republicans have several declared candidates for the party’s nomination, including businessman Dave Westlake and real estate developer Terrence Wall, but the only Republican that has showed any lead over Feingold in the polls is former Governor and Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson. Thompson has not committed to running for Feingold’s seat.