Democratic strategists and organizers are hoping that if 2024 presidential nominee Kamala Harris performs well in the November election, there will be a down-ballot effect in gubernatorial, U.S. Senate and U.S. House races. Democrats have a small majority in the Senate, while Republicans have a single-digit majority in the House.
Harris is cautious about the election, continuing to describe herself as the "underdog." But many national and battleground state polls are showing her with small leads over GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.
In an article Tuesday, The Hill's Mike Lillis reports that Democrats are "increasingly bullish about their chances of flipping the House now that Harris, and not President Joe Biden, will sit at the top of the ticket.
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Rep. Dan Kildee (D-MI) says he's seeing a "huge uptick" with "volunteers and small-dollar donors."
Kildee told The Hill, "No question about it: It elevates a lot of our races. It may broaden the map. Look, we've still got to finish it. But just looking at volunteers and small-dollar donors — those are two variables that matter, we know they are."
Outgoing Rep. Ann Kuster (D-NH) also believes that having Harris as the presidential nominee instead of Biden improves' Democrats' chances of flipping the House.
Kuster told The Hill, "The path we were on was unsustainable. To be earnest, I thought we were going to lose 20-plus seats. And lose the Senate, and lose the White House."
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But Kuster is much more optimistic now, saying, "I'm seeing polling all over the country every day. And we are flipping 5-plus points in all these districts."
Meanwhile, Will Reinert, spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, said the most contentious House races are likely to require "trench warfare" in order for the GOP to keep the speaker's gavel.
Reinert told The Hill, "Because we are well-prepared, we are well-positioned to grow our majority. But it's going to be a knife fight until the very end."
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Read The Hill's full report at this link.