With Democratic Sen. Kent Conradretiring, Roll Call Politics has moved the North Dakota Senate race from Leans Democratic to Leans Republican.
The state has a history of electing moderate Democrats, but Conrad’s exit from the ticket puts the seat in jeopardy for the party, which lacks an obvious top-tier choice to step up.
Democrats are coming off a down election year in the state, when former Democratic Sen. Byron Dorgan’s seat was easily won by GOP Sen. John Hoeven, and former Democratic Rep. Earl Pomeroy lost his at-large seat by 10 points.
The presidential election could also have a downballot effect on the Senate race. While President Barack Obama won 45 percent in 2008 — 10 points higher than Sen. John Kerry four years earlier — he still lost the state by 8 points in what was a great national landscape for the party.
The rating of this race could shift depending on which candidates from each party decide to run, but at this point the edge goes to the GOP. For more on our race ratings click here.
Lois Lerner, director of exempt organizations for the IRS, arrives for a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on the investigation of the IRS' targeting of political groups. Lerner invoked her Fifth Amendment right to not testify and caused a protest from some committee members when she offered an opening statement and engaged in dialogue with members before invoking the right.
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