Welcome to At the Races! Each week we bring you news and analysis from the CQ Roll Call campaign team. Know someone who’d like to get this newsletter? They can subscribe here.
For months, the conventional wisdom held that Senate Democrats face a bleak map in 2024. The numbers tell the story: Democrats have to defend 23 seats this cycle, compared with 11 for Republicans. Many of those races are in states that range from purple to deep crimson.
But in recent weeks, the picture has brightened somewhat. Several incumbents that were thought to be weighing retirement, such as Montana’s Jon Tester, Ohio’s Sherrod Brown, Pennsylvania’s Bob Casey and Virginia’s Tim Kaine, announced they are going for another term.
