House Democrats see 51 seats in play for control of chamber

9 hours ago CNN Political Unit (CNN) – The House Democratic campaign arm on Wednesday announced 13 new races have been added to their "Red to Blue" program, a part of the committee's "Drive to 25" campaign to win back control of the House of Representatives.

With the additional candidates, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is now looking at 51 races they consider up for grabs.

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

– Check out the CNN Electoral Map and Calculator and game out your own strategy for November.

The Democrats lost control of the House in the 2010 midterm elections, thanks to an historic 63 seat pick-up by the GOP. As their "Drive for 25" states, the party needs to grab back 25 seats to regain the majority.

New polling, the group says, indicates that 27 Republican-held districts are vulnerable in November, with Democratic candidates in those districts ahead by a 6-point lead. Rep. Steve Israel, chairman of the DCCC, argued on a conference call that the poll results represent further proof the wave of 2010 tea party momentum is subsiding.

"The tea party tide that swept these Republicans in (to Congress)...has receded, leaving these Republicans high and dry," Israel said, referring to candidates in what he described as more moderate, affluent districts.

Those tapped by the DCCC in the newest round of races are competing in states that include California, Illinois, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Texas and Minnesota.

The organization made headlines recently when it issued an apology after it attacked billionaire GOP supporter Sheldon Adelson, highlighting prostitution allegations involving Adelson's company, Las Vegas Sands. Faced with the threat of a lawsuit from the casino mogul, the DCCC retracted its statement last week.

Meanwhile, the group's counterpart in the House, the National Republican Congressional Committee, on Wednesday responded to the DCCC's latest wave of candidates.

"House Democrats are clearly willing to say or do anything to avoid taking responsibility for their economic record. It explains why they had to apologize to Sheldon Adelson, and why they're grasping at straws with these lackluster candidates," Andrea Bozek, NRCC spokeswoman, said in a statement.

In April, House Speaker John Boehner raised brows when he said "there's a one-in-three chance" Republicans could lose control of the House this year.

"I would say that there is a two-in-three chance that we win control of the House again but there's a one-in-three chance that we could lose and I'm being myself, frank," Boehner told Fox News, according to a transcript of the interview.

In his weekly briefing with reporters last week, however, the speaker said he was feeling better about the party's chances of keeping the majority.

But Israel sounded confident on Wednesday and ready to battle this fall as Democrats attempt to recapture control of the chamber.

"To win the House, I believe you have to exploit every opportunity you have and exploit every loss the Republicans have suffered," Israel said.

– CNN's Ashley Killough and Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.

The 13 candidates:

Julia Brownley (CA-26)
Alan Lowenthal (CA-47)
Scott Peters (CA-52)
Bill Enyart (IL-12)
David Gill (IL-13)
Mike Obermueller (MN-02)
Hayden Rogers (NC-11)
Michelle Lujan Grisham (NM-01)
Carol Shea-Porter (NH-01)
Mark Murphy (NY-11)
Sean Patrick Maloney (NY-18)
Pete Gallego (TX-23)
Suzan DelBene (WA-01)

View the original article here

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.