With the election being just about 82 days away, the eyes of the nation are on the chaotic presidential race. But with all the attacks and punches between the Clinton and Trump campaigns, many people are not aware of the fiery races occurring down-ballot. Here is a guide to what is expected to be some of the roughest Senate elections in recent times.
Florida:
Without the state of Florida even having selected their candidates yet, the race has already been fraught with drama. On one side, the Democratic primary has pitted establishment favorite Rep. Patrick Murphy against a champion of the far left, Rep. Alan Grayson. The race has become increasingly bitter in recent months. Grayson, feeling as though the Democratic establishment is attempting to rig the election against him, went so far as to call out Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid at a private luncheon. Grayson has come under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for allegedly running a hedge fund while congressman. He claims this is the work of members of his own party working against him. Things haven't gotten much better for Grayson since then. His former partner came out earlier this week and claimed that Grayson had abused him and their children. Grayson has since denied the accusation.
On the Republican side, Senator Marco Rubio has jumped into the race after claiming for a year that he would focus on his bid for the presidency and not run for re-election. After dropping out of the race in March, he has since changed his mind after enormous pressure from Senate Republican leadership to reconsider. He is expected to defeat his lone challenger, businessman Carlos Beruff.
New Hampshire:
The New Hampshire Senate race has incumbent Republican Senator Kelly Ayotte running against popular Democratic outgoing Governor Maggie Hassan. Polls have the race statistically tied. There is a polling average of Hassan up by just one percentage point, 45 percent to 44 percent.
Hassan has repeatedly called out Ayotte for not distancing herself enough from Trump, her party's presidential nominee. Ayotte is confident, however, that the large population of independent, unaffiliated voters in the state will draw the distinction between herself and her controversial presidential nominee.
Hassan has also faced questions about her own presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton. Asked by CNN on Wednesday if she feels that Clinton is honest, Hassan refused to answer the question when it was asked three times in a row. Her campaign later put out a statement saying she agreed.
Nevada:
When longtime Nevada Senator Harry Reid announced last year that he was retiring, a mad scramble was set off in the state to replace him. Two candidates have appeared to face off for this hotly contested seat: Democratic State Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto, and Republican Rep. Joe Heck. The two tied at 37 percent recently in a Suffolk University poll.
The state has long been a tough battleground between Democrats and Republicans with the victors often winning by slim margins. Nevada is likely to shape up to be a tough battle during this election cycle.
Kentucky:
The Kentucky race will see Libertarian hero Rand Paul run in an attempt to keep his seat from Democratic challenger Jim Gray. Gray's candidacy is part of the reason that Paul dropped out of the presidential race in February. Gray is expected to be a tough opponent to beat. The multimillionaire Lexington mayor is likely to self finance his campaign and is popular with state Democrats.
North Carolina:
The North Carolina race was expected to be an easy one for incumbent GOP Senator Richard Burr. However, Democratic former State Senator Deborah Ross has suddenly experienced a surge in the polls. Burr was 10 points just months ago, but now she trails him by just one point in the polls. It is likely that Trump and Governor Pat McCrory's unpopularity in the state has contributed to the new state of the race.
California:
California is a a race unlike any other this cycle. Unlike most states, California uses what is referred to as an open primary or a jungle primary. A majority of states will have separate primaries for the Republican and Democratic parties. The winner of those primaries will then face off in the general election. In a jungle primary, all candidates of all parties are on the ballot and the top two winners face off in November. This year, two Democrats have emerged as the finalists. State Attorney General Kamala Harris and Rep. Linda Sanchez. This means Democrats may be forced to pick sides in what might be an awkward situation.
With Republican control of the Senate being "dicey" as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell put it, Democrats are going to be throwing everything they have at trying to reclaim control. Republicans will be doing everything they have to keep control. The following months leading up to November are going to continue to be filled with drama and insults amongst Senate campaigns as they battle in these tough elections.
