Inside Elections

2014 House Ratings (January 17, 2014)

January 17, 2014 · 2:56 PM EST

Virginia Senate: Gillespie’s Entry Gives Republicans a Chance

by Nathan L. Gonzales January 17, 2014 · 10:27 AM EST

Republicans continue to expand the Senate map in their quest to win back the majority in 2014. With former Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie in the race, Democratic Sen. Mark Warner can no longer take his re-election race for granted. But Virginia is still a long way from the…

2014 Senate Ratings (January 17, 2014)

January 17, 2014 · 10:23 AM EST

California 25: Open Seat Gets More Competitive

by Nathan L. Gonzales January 16, 2014 · 12:02 PM EST

After a flurry of surprise retirements, GOP Rep. Buck McKeon’s announcement was one of the worst kept secrets of the last year. So even though the district is competitive, Republicans weren’t caught off-guard and have two credible candidates already in the race.

The California congressman’s…

2014 House Ratings (January 16, 2014)

January 16, 2014 · 11:34 AM EST

Rothenberg’s Dangerous Dozen Open House Seats

by Stuart Rothenberg January 16, 2014 · 10:05 AM EST

I wrote my first Dangerous Dozen open House seats column in this space 14 years ago, so I figured I might as well keep the streak going, though it isn’t nearly as impressive as Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak.

As in my Jan. 17, 2000, column, the districts are listed in order of…

New York 21: Owens Retirement Moves Seat to Toss-Up

by Nathan L. Gonzales January 14, 2014 · 2:05 PM EST

New York Rep. Bill Owens’ retirement gives Republicans another good opportunity to take over a Democratic seat, if they don’t get in their own way. Some GOP strategists may still have nightmares over the special election in this region more than four years ago. But the 21st District might be…

2014 House Ratings (January 14, 2014)

January 14, 2014 · 1:29 PM EST

The Race Democrats Can’t Afford to Lose

by Stuart Rothenberg January 13, 2014 · 10:24 AM EST

It’s rare in politics that anything other than a presidential contest is viewed as a “must win” — but the special election in Florida’s 13th District falls into that category for Democrats.

A loss in the competitive March 11 contest would almost certainly be regarded by dispassionate observers…

Pay No Attention to That Title of Speaker in Front of My Name

by Nathan L. Gonzales January 11, 2014 · 9:30 AM EST

As speaker of the state House, Thom Tillis is one of the most powerful politicians in North Carolina. But you wouldn’t know it from the Republican’s first ad in the U.S. Senate race.

“In the private sector, businesses are built on accountability,” Tillis says. “But accountability is a foreign…