The Forgotten Senate Races and What They Mean for the Next President

John Jessup : Nov 4, 2016
CBN News

"I confess I do not have a sense of where the Senate's going to go. It looks like the Democrats are a little ahead at this point, but as we know, a lot can change in a few days in this campaign."

(Washington) — [CBN News] The long and ugly presidential campaign has overshadowed important Senate races in key battleground states – many of them too close to call. (Screengrab via CBN News)

With control of the Chamber hanging in the balance, both parties are scrambling in the waning days of the campaign. Lawmakers on Capitol Hill can help make or break a presidency.

"How the Senate goes, how the House goes, will determine a lot about whoever the president is and how that person can govern," Karlyn Bowman, an elections expert at the American Enterprise Institute, told CBN News.

Thirty-four Senate seats are up for grabs and Republicans face a tough fight to maintain control.

The GOP has 24 seats in play this election cycle, while Democrats only have 10. That gives them an advantage in trying to increase numbers or even gain control of the Chamber.

"I confess I do not have a sense of where the Senate's going to go," Bowman said. "It looks like the Democrats are a little ahead at this point, but as we know, a lot can change in a few days in this campaign." (Photo Credit: CBN News)

Bowman believes this contest could be decided in six toss-up states: Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Indiana, Missouri, and Nevada.

"Pennsylvania and New Hampshire remain toss-ups in the truest sense of the word, and if Donald Trump can improve his standing in those states by even a few points, not even necessarily winning, GOP incumbents could survive," she predicted.

The Republican nominee's outsider status resonates with his core supporters. But analysts, and even some Republicans, blame Trump's controversies for dragging down other GOP candidates on the ballot.

In Ohio, Senate Republican Rob Portman is expected to easily win re-election and possibly help carry the Republican nominee in the state.

CBN Chief Political Correspondent, David Brody, sees the same effect in another key battleground.

"A lot of folks think that the poll numbers in Florida, believe it or not, which are actually relatively decent for Donald Trump, is because Marco Rubio is actually carrying Donald Trump," Brody said.

With some polls showing Democrats on track to win a narrow majority, one Republican super PAC dumped $25 million into the closest Senate races — a last-minute drive to help keep control.

"They're feeling nervous. They have to do this money dump right now because if they don't, they are not just in danger of losing the Senate, but they're in danger of losing even more seats to the point where it would be much easier for Democrats to control not just the Senate, but the agenda within the Senate," Brody explained.

That's crucial, especially when it comes to nominees for the Supreme Court and other posts, as well as the president's policies and pet projects.

"Hillary Clinton has been very clear. She's going to use that executive order pen, and she's going to start doing some things that relate to regulations in this country," Brody explained.

"And so she may bypass the Senate - Republican or Democrat - to make sure her agenda is fulfilled," he said. "Conversely, the same might be said for Donald Trump--though he has said he would use it sparingly - a lot less than Hillary Clinton."

Americans won't see how that next chapter begins until the drama of this election finally ends.

*CBN neither supports nor opposes any candidate for public office.

CBN News