California Not Feeling GOP Wave in House Races – Just Three of 53 Districts in Play and One Is GOP
If Republicans take the House next month, the “wave” of seats flipping from blue to red in the Rust and Bible belts will stop at Nevada’s western border, according to analysis by Mackenzie Weinger writing for CalBuzz.
“We’re a Dem-leaning state and President Obama’s approval ratings are a bit higher here than they are elsewhere, and in some ways that insulates us from that backlash,” said UC San Diego political science professor Thad Kousser, according to Weinger. “And secondly, the post-2000 redistricting means there are a lot less competitive seats.”
Within the state’s 53-seat House delegation, Weinger found just three seats up for grabs and one of them is held by Dan Lungren, a Republican. Democratic Rep. Loretta Sanchez, one of the most prominent members of the California delegation, is in a competitive race for the first time since she was elected in 1996, and Rep. Jerry McNerney, the other Democrat, is opposed by the tea bagger who made news last week calling for closing all public schools in America.
