Though most people have been paying most of their attention to presidential race, Election Day is not only about who will win the White House. When you walk into the voting booth, you’ll also have the opportunity to cast ballots for your local and state officials, as well as for some of your representatives in the House and Senate. As we all gear up to see how the presidential race will be decided, it is important to remember that the demographics of the House and Senate could change for the next two years as well.
Over the past three consecutive elections, over 100 seats have changed hands in Congress. The peak of this continual musical chairs game came in 2010, when the GOP gained 63 seats in the House, and thus the majority. This year, 240 Republicans and 190 Democrats are incumbents, and are 5 vacancies. In order for a party to have control they need 218 seats, so the Democrats need 25 seats in order to steal control from Republicans. Can they do it?
Then there is the Senate. Currently, the Democrats control the Senate and are favored to stay in control, though they are defending twice as many seats as the Republican. So as long as the polling is accurate, Dems should pick up an open seat in Maine and replace Republican incumbents Massachusetts and Indiana. Thus, in order for the Republicans to gain control they would have to win seven other seats.
NBC News Capitol Hill Correspondent Luke Russert joins the Cyclists to help them dissect the House races. msnbc Contributor Jimmy Williams will be at the table to dissect the Senate races.
Be sure to tune in at 3 p.m. for full coverage, and don’t forget to go out and vote.
Abby Borovitz