The 2020 elections are set to flip the script in the battle for the Senate, as Republicans must defend at least 20 seats, teeing up…
The 2020 elections are set to flip the script in the battle for the Senate, as Republicans must defend at least 20 seats, teeing up a series of potentially competitive races that could alter the political map.
Republicans have so far expanded their Senate majority going into 2019 to 52 seats. They could pick up one more if Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) emerges victorious in her runoff election against Democrat Mike Espy, a former congressman and agriculture secretary.
But Democrats have already put a number of Senate seats in their sights as they look to recapture a majority in the chamber in 2020. Meanwhile, Republicans are eager to win back the Alabama seat currently held by Sen. Doug Jones (D).
Here are five Senate races that are shaping up to be among the most competitive in 2020.
Alabama
Jones eked out a win in his 2017 special election bid against a Republican candidate shrouded in scandal and controversy. But as he prepares to run for his first full term in 2020, it’s unclear if he’ll be able to hold on in deep-red Alabama.
Alabama is the only solidly Republican state where a Democrat will face reelection in 2020, and while Jones doesn’t yet have a top-tier challenger, the GOP is already eyeing his seat as its best pick-up opportunity in the next election.
What’s more, Republicans are likely to go after Jones on his record in the Senate thus far, such as his vote against the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh .
The Senate Leadership Fund, a super PAC aligned with Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), hit the Alabama Democrat in a press release last week over his vote to reelect Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N. Y.) as minority leader.
Maine
Democrats are bullish about their chances of ousting Sen. Susan Collins (R) in 2020.
Democrat Janet Mills easily won her bid to succeed retiring Republican Gov. Paul LePage this year, leaving Collins as the last remaining GOP statewide elected official.
