Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar
With less than a month to go to the midterm elections, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee on Monday announced that it added six more candidates to its “Red to Blue” program, which gives financial and organizational support to top-tier Democratic nominees in Republican-held House districts.
All six candidates sit in districts President Donald Trump carried by double-digit margins in 2024. But as the bottom falls out for Trump and the GOP, with even Republicans abandoning the party amid frustration with the rising cost of living and the boondoggle of a war in Iran, Democrats now view these seats as winnable thanks to both the political environment and the strength of their candidates.
The candidates the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee added to the “Red to Blue” program include:
- Chris Jones, an ordained minister who is running against GOP Rep. French Hill in Arkansas’ 2nd District. Trump won this district by 15.5 percentage points in 2024. But like other areas with large agricultural sectors, Trump’s tariffs and war in Iran have hit the district’s residents hard, putting a seat like this in play.
- Dwayne Romero, an Army engineer running in Colorado’s 3rd against Republican Rep. Jeff Hurd. Trump won this district by 9.7 points in 2024. A super PAC affiliated with Trump is spending in this seat, which means they have data showing it is at risk.
- Former television news anchor Eliott Rodriguez, who is running against GOP Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar in Florida’s Miami-based 27th District. Trump carried the seat by nearly 15 points in 2024. But his cruel immigration agenda and his poor handling of the economy has caused Hispanic voters to swing hard to Democrats in polling from this cycle, imperiling Salazar’s reelection hopes. Indeed, Salazar herself is so worried that she cut an ad (lightly) denouncing Trump’s immigration enforcement efforts.
- Former Nevada state Assembly Majority Leader Teresa Benitez-Thompson, who is running against Republican David Flippo in Nevada’s 2nd District, a seat Trump won by 13.9 points in 2024. Established in 1983, the district has never been held by a Democrat, but Benitez-Thompson is a moderate Democrat running against Flippo, who is so odious that the district’s retiring Republican congressman has refused to support Flippo’s campaign. Polls show the race is close. And Trump is reportedly planning to hold a rally in the district, though that might not be helpful at a time when his approval rating is in the toilet.
- Blake Gendebien, a dairy farmer running against Republican Anthony Constantino in New York’s 21st District. Trump won the seat—held by retiring Rep. Elise Stefanik—by nearly 21 points in 2024. But as far back as last year, Republicans saw seats like this slipping away, with Trump reneging on his decision to nominate Stefanik to his Cabinet over fears her district could flip to Democrats in a special election. What’s more, Constantino, the GOP nominee, is a Trump-obsessed lunatic who gets into petty social media feuds, making him a poor nominee.
- Tennessee state Rep. Justin Pearson, who is running against Republican Brent Taylor in the Volunteer State’s 9th District, which the GOP corruptly redrew to make it unwinnable for Democrats. Trump won the newly redrawn seat by 21.1 points in 2024. But Democrats view Pearson as a strong recruit who could overcome the gerrymander.
The DCCC’s expansion of its “Red to Blue” program comes a few days after the committee said it was investing in eight other House seats Trump carried by double digits.
CNN also reported that Republicans are also mulling the abandonment of Iowa’s 1st District, represented by Republican Rep. Marianette Miller-Meeks, who is trailing Democratic challenger Christina Bohannan in polls.
Both seats are projected to flip blue by Inside Elections, a top political handicapping outlet..
Indeed, Democrats are feeling so confident about their odds on November 3 that the DCCC’s political director told Politico the party could hold as many as 240 seats when the new Congress is sworn in on Jan. 3. For reference, that would be two seats shy of what Republicans held after the 2010 red wave.
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