{"id":7000,"date":"2026-07-11T09:34:45","date_gmt":"2026-07-11T09:34:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000"},"modified":"2026-07-11T09:34:45","modified_gmt":"2026-07-11T09:34:45","slug":"here-are-the-races-to-watch-as-democrats-grow-more-bullish-on-retaking-the-senate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000","title":{"rendered":"Here are the races to watch as Democrats grow more bullish on retaking the Senate"},"content":{"rendered":"

The map still favors Republicans, but political headwinds are shifting to boost Democratic chances of flipping seats – despite the scandal in Maine.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Read more Jordan achieves a try-scoring record as New Zealand beats Italy 47-17 in the Nations Championship<\/a><\/p>\n

Democrats are growing increasingly bullish they can seize control of the Senate, even as crucial races in Maine and Michigan remain unpredictable.<\/p>\n

Some even see Maine Democratic nominee Graham Platner\u2019s exit from the race<\/a> this week as boon to the party\u2019s chances in a must-win contest.<\/p>\n

Across the country, a handful of races will determine whether Republicans hold the majority, which they are favored to retain.<\/p>\n

But Democrats\u2019 once long-shot chances to take over the Senate have improved as economic pressures sour voters<\/a>\u2019 outlook and President Donald Trump\u2019s approval ratings drop<\/a> in key Republican strongholds. The president has downplayed <\/a>worries about housing costs and other affordability concerns, creating an opening for Democrats to appeal to financially pinched voters who might have otherwise sided with the GOP.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is buyer\u2019s remorse for President Trump and his economy, and the Republicans are being blamed for that,\u201d said Jessica Taylor, who analyzes Senate races for the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have the president who doesn\u2019t really seem to be prioritizing the issue that voters say they care about: affordability,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Those trends help the likelihood that Democrats could win the Senate \u2014 despite the roiling Democratic primary in Michigan<\/a> and this week\u2019s implosion of Platner\u2019s campaign in Maine following an allegation of sexual assault<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Republicans have a 53-47 advantage in the Senate. Democrats must retain every seat they hold now plus flip at least four Republican ones. Most targets are states Trump won by double-digit margins two years ago.<\/p>\n

The Democrats\u2019 optimism is tinged with a hard reality check, as Jim Manley, a senior Democratic strategist and former top Senate aide, put it this week<\/a>: \u201cWe truly have a chance to try and flip the Senate, but only if everything goes just exactly perfectly.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here are the races to watch, according to Cook Political Report rankings<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Four seats held by Republicans are either toss-up races or have a strong chance of being won by Democrats \u2014 one more highly competitive race than Democrats eyed three months ago<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In North Carolina, the retirement of Sen. Thom Tillis (R) made the swing state a top Democratic target. The party recruited a formidable nominee in former governor Roy Cooper, who has already won statewide. He\u2019ll face Republican Michael Whatley, a former state party chair and Republican National Committee leader who is less well known. More than $137 million has been invested in political TV advertising for the race, according to political ad tracking firm AdImpact.<\/p>\n

The seat held by Maine\u2019s veteran Sen. Susan Collins (R) has long been an elusive target for Democrats, given her record of handily winning in the state even when other GOP candidates lose there. Now, Democrats have a short window to recruit a replacement<\/a> for Platner, once a rising Democratic figure. But analysts say the exit of a scandal-plagued Democratic candidate <\/a>might boost the odds of beating Collins.<\/p>\n

Ohio has not been a battleground state for a while, but analysts see highly competitive dynamics between Democrat Sherrod Brown, a former longtime senator, and Sen. Jon Husted (R), who was appointed when Vice President JD Vance vacated the seat. Brown lost his reelection bid in 2024 at the same time Trump won Ohio by double-digits margins, but the president\u2019s approval rating there has dropped, creating more favorable terrain for Democrats.<\/p>\n

The Alaska Senate race has become as a tougher win for Republicans now that two candidates named Dan Sullivan<\/a> will both be on the crowded, ranked-choice ballot in the August primary. Both Sullivans are Republicans, though Sen. Dan S. Sullivan is the sitting senator, and Dan J. Sullivan is a retired-teacher new to the party \u2014 and subject to accusations of meddling<\/a>. The front-running Democrat is former congresswoman Mary Peltola, who has won statewide before. Democrats see high diesel prices in rural Alaska as motivation to vote against Trump\u2019s party.<\/p>\n

Read more Nationals falter in the ninth, enabling comeback win for the Yankees<\/a><\/p>\n

Michigan\u2019s swing voters helped Trump secure the presidency in 2024, even as they also narrowly elected a Democrat to the Senate. Now the state\u2019s other Senate seat is open, and Republicans feel bullish about former congressman Mike Rogers, their candidate who lost by a small margin in 2024 and is running again in 2026.<\/p>\n

Democrats, meanwhile, still have a very expensive primary race with a sharp ideological divide<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Moderate Rep. Haley Stevens (D) secured establishment support and funding, while Abdul El-Sayed, a former public health official, is surging among the party\u2019s left wing<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Republicans, and some Democrats, view an El-Sayed win in the Aug. 4 primary as easier to defeat in the contest to fill the seat now held by retiring Sen. Gary Peters (D-Michigan), though El-Sayed and his backers see Rogers as vulnerable in a year less favorable to Republicans.<\/p>\n

These states have been reliably Republican, and Democrats\u2019 dreams of flipping Texas blue have consistently remained unfulfilled.<\/p>\n

However, the high cost of fuel in agricultural communities, labor issues tied to strict immigration enforcement and a long-established pattern of a backlash against the party in power have Democrats optimistic that at least some of these states could be flipped.<\/p>\n

In Iowa, analysts see a strong Democratic candidate paired with a tough environment for Republicans \u2014 even in a state Trump won by 13 percentage points. Democrat Josh Turek, a state lawmaker, is running as an outsider and selling \u201cprairie populism.\u201d He faces a tough race against Rep. Ashley Hinson (R), a former TV journalist, for the seat vacated by Sen. Joni Ernst (R), who is retiring.<\/p>\n

The expensive Texas race features Democratic state lawmaker James Talarico against Trump-endorsed Republican Ken Paxton, the former Texas attorney general. As he did in Iowa, Trump won Texas by double-digit margins in 2024. <\/b><\/p>\n

But both parties see that race as a toss-up, with Paxton facing headwinds because of Trump\u2019s decline in popularity and Paxton\u2019s own string of political scandals<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In Nebraska, where Trump won by 20 points in 2024, Democrats threw their support behind an independent who gave a strong showing in a 2024 Senate bid. A win by independent Dan Osborn this year would mean one less Republican vote in the Senate, which Democrats count as a win. Osborn faces Sen. Pete Ricketts (R), a former governor with personal wealth to invest in the race, who was appointed to the seat in 2023.<\/p>\n

Republicans hold an edge and are not just playing defense. The party has targeted three other Democratic-held seats where Trump performed well as potential pickup opportunities.<\/p>\n

In Georgia, which Trump won in 2024 by two points, Republicans hope to unseat Sen. Jon Ossoff (D) after they nominated Trump-endorsed Rep. Mike Collins (R) in a runoff.<\/p>\n

The GOP is also hoping for a win in an open Senate race in New Hampshire, a state Trump narrowly lost in 2024. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D) is retiring, and New Hampshire voters have a primary election in September. The most prominent Democratic contender is Rep. Chris Pappas, and two former senators are in the race for the Republican nomination: former New Hampshire senator John E. Sununu and former Massachusetts senator Scott Brown.<\/p>\n

Republicans have also targeted Minnesota, where Trump lost in 2024 by about 4 points, and Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minnesota) is not on the ballot. The August primary will determine the candidates, which could shape the direction of the race.<\/p>\n

Read more Matt Olson plays in 741st straight game with Braves to become the franchise\u2019s Iron Man<\/a><\/p>\n

Amber Phillips contributed to this report.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The map still favors Republicans, but political headwinds are shifting to boost Democratic chances of flipping seats \u2014 despite the scandal in Maine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6999,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7000","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nHere are the races to watch as Democrats grow more bullish on retaking the Senate - Moving Insider USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Here are the races to watch as Democrats grow more bullish on retaking the Senate - Moving Insider USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The map still favors Republicans, but political headwinds are shifting to boost Democratic chances of flipping seats \u2014 despite the scandal in Maine.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Moving Insider USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-11T09:34:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7000#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7000\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/22d40ab81790f6a361021763bb56ef03\"},\"headline\":\"Here are the races to watch as Democrats grow more bullish on retaking the Senate\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-11T09:34:45+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7000\"},\"wordCount\":1295,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7000#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/fc22950dd5f9c65af5a96ad92478801a.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"Interesting\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7000#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7000\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7000\",\"name\":\"Here are the races to watch as Democrats grow more bullish on retaking the Senate - Moving Insider USA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7000#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7000#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/fc22950dd5f9c65af5a96ad92478801a.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-11T09:34:45+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/22d40ab81790f6a361021763bb56ef03\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7000#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7000\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7000#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/fc22950dd5f9c65af5a96ad92478801a.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/fc22950dd5f9c65af5a96ad92478801a.png\",\"width\":2300,\"height\":1533},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7000#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Here are the races to watch as Democrats grow more bullish on retaking the Senate\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Moving Insider USA\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/22d40ab81790f6a361021763bb56ef03\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Here are the races to watch as Democrats grow more bullish on retaking the Senate - Moving Insider USA","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Here are the races to watch as Democrats grow more bullish on retaking the Senate - Moving Insider USA","og_description":"The map still favors Republicans, but political headwinds are shifting to boost Democratic chances of flipping seats \u2014 despite the scandal in Maine.","og_url":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000","og_site_name":"Moving Insider USA","article_published_time":"2026-07-11T09:34:45+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/#\/schema\/person\/22d40ab81790f6a361021763bb56ef03"},"headline":"Here are the races to watch as Democrats grow more bullish on retaking the Senate","datePublished":"2026-07-11T09:34:45+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000"},"wordCount":1295,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/fc22950dd5f9c65af5a96ad92478801a.png","articleSection":["Interesting"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000","url":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000","name":"Here are the races to watch as Democrats grow more bullish on retaking the Senate - Moving Insider USA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/fc22950dd5f9c65af5a96ad92478801a.png","datePublished":"2026-07-11T09:34:45+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/#\/schema\/person\/22d40ab81790f6a361021763bb56ef03"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/fc22950dd5f9c65af5a96ad92478801a.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/fc22950dd5f9c65af5a96ad92478801a.png","width":2300,"height":1533},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7000#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Here are the races to watch as Democrats grow more bullish on retaking the Senate"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/","name":"Moving Insider USA","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/#\/schema\/person\/22d40ab81790f6a361021763bb56ef03","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com"],"url":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7000","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7000"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7000\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6999"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7000"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7000"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7000"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}