The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee will announce today that it believes it has “strong candidates” running in more than twice as many Republican and open seats needed to win the House majority next year.

With several new recruits on board, including Nevada Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford, who is announcing his candidacy today, the DCCC says it is well ahead of schedule and on track to put the House in play in 2012.

The party also welcomed two independent polls Wednesday that signaled voters may be ready for a Democratic majority again. A Reuters/Ipsos poll found Democrats leading the generic ballot 48 percent to 40 percent, and an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll reported that voters preferred a Democratic-controlled Congress 45 percent to 41 percent.

“Thanks to the work of DCCC Recruiting Committee Chairwoman Allyson Schwartz and others, we have reached our recruitment goals for this year — ahead of schedule — and have excellent candidates running with profiles that fit their districts,” DCCC Chairman Steve Israel (N.Y.) said.

The rollout is a continuation of an earlier campaign to highlight the DCCC’s efforts to win back the House. Israel announced on July 21 that the DCCC had recruited candidates to run in 41 open or GOP-held districts.

Some of the new candidates being highlighted today include: retired Astronaut Jose Hernandez and physician Raul Ruiz in California; attorney Rob Wallace in Oklahoma; retired Brig. Gen. Jonathan George in Indiana; former state Rep. Keith Fitzgerald in Florida; business consultant Jamie Wall in Wisconsin; former Reps. Mary Jo Kilroy (Ohio), Dan Maffei (N.Y.) and Dina Titus (Nev.); Pam Gulleson in North Dakota; and former state Rep. Gary McDowell in Michigan.