WASHINGTON — House Democrats are expanding their target list of GOP-held seats to flip, in a bid to project confidence less than a month out from the midterm elections.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) added six seats to its “Red to Blue program,” growing its list to 46 and vowing to equip the initiative’s new members with more resources.
The six newbies are: Chris Jones in Arizona District 2, Dwayne Romero in Colorado District 3, Eliott Rodriguez in Florida District 27, Teresa Benitez-Thompson in Nevada District 2, Blake Gendebien in New York District 21, and Justin Pearson in Tennessee District 9.
“The candidates added to our Red to Blue program today are winning over voters with their message of lowering costs — from gas and groceries to health care and housing,” DCCC Chair Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.) said in a statement.
“At a time when so many families are struggling to pay the bills, Americans deserve representatives who will actually fight to make their lives better.”
New members of the “Red to Blue program” will get fundraising support, guidance on strategy, training and more staff resources.
The new additions come after the DCCC announced last week that it was adding eight seats to its offensive target list that it deemed “Districts in Play.”
Those seats that Democrats were targeting were either rated “solid” or “likely” Republican by the Cook Political Report.
“Democrats can slap a ‘battleground’ label on any district they want, but wishful thinking doesn’t change the fundamentals of the House map,” National Republican Congressional Committee spokesperson Mike Marinella previously told The Post about the DCCC’s additions to its “Districts in Play” list.
“While they chase imaginary fairytales and get dragged left by their socialist nominees, House Republicans are outraising, outspending, and outworking Democrats where the majority will actually be won.”
But the announcements come as the Democrats are trying to tout confidence in their prospects of flipping the House.
Notably, Republicans have a significant cash advantage over Dems to target seats and support candidates.
The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) had $89 million in its war chest, compared to the DCCC’s $76 million cash on hand, according to the latest Federal Election Commission filings.
That phenomenon is true with other official party campaign arms as well. The NRCC has $125 million in its coffers compared to the Democratic National Committee’s $16.9 million cash on hand and $17.6 million in debt, per the latest FEC disclosures.
Still, Democrats have an 8.5 percentage-point edge over the GOP in the generic congressional ballot, according to the latest RealClearPolitics aggregate of polls.
