House Democrats Expand Target Map With One Month Until Midterms

House Democrats are expanding their list of target seats for the upcoming midterm elections, adding eight more districts to their map with just one month remaining before Election Day. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) now considers 66 House districts to be competitive, a number double that of the 2024 cycle.

The newly added districts are held by Republican Representatives Jack Bergman (R-Miss.), Derek Schmidt (R-Kansas), Brad Knott (R-NC), Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ), Stephanie Bice (R-Okla.), Michael Baumgartner (R-Wash.), and Ben Cline (R-Va.). The open seat in Texas’ 9th Congressional District has also been added to the DCCC’s map. The Cook Political Report rates all of these seats as "likely" or "solid" Republican.

DCCC Chair Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.) stated that Democrats are "expanding the midterm map into deep red territory as Republicans run scared." She added, "Democrats are poised to win the House majority in November because voters are fed up with Republicans’ broken promises while Democrats are focused on lowering costs, tackling corruption, and making life easier for hardworking families."

Historically, the party holding the White House has lost House seats in most midterm elections since 1938, with exceptions in 1998 and 2002. Despite this trend, Republican leaders maintain that they have a viable path to retaining control of the House, pointing to instances where polls have underestimated their support.

Financially, the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) reported $89 million in cash on hand, while the DCCC had $76 million. At the national party level, the Republican National Committee possesses $125 million, in contrast to the Democratic National Committee's $16.9 million and $17.6 million in debt. Nevertheless, Democrats hold an 8.3 percentage-point advantage in the generic congressional ballot, according to an aggregate of polls by RealClearPolitics.