Republicans in the state legislature are hoping to make inroads into Democratic-held legislatures this fall while simultaneously defending their turf after successfully flipping the Virginia state House last year and fielding a slate of GOP candidates actively campaigning against President Joe Biden.
G.O.P. Cements Hold On Legislatures in Battleground States
According to a letter released by the RSLC alongside its target list, the party is buoyed by its achievements in Virginia in 2021 and by its reduction of the Democratic majority in New Jersey. Further gains for the GOP are hoped for before the end of this decade in states like Colorado and Minnesota, where the party has already made inroads against Democratic majorities.
“Voters are searching for a counterbalance,” Republican State Leadership Committee President Dee Duncan said in an interview. That’s probably going to be the Republican candidates in the upcoming election. As for the future, I believe that we will be able to defend our victories and play in new venues.
Duncan firmly asserted, “This is going to be nationalised.” Using the argument that “we’re going to be able to win on that because President Biden has been such a failure,” he ran through the three issues he thought would propel Republican candidates: education, crime, and the economy.
And while Duncan admitted there is “a fair probability that [Biden’s] going to go up,” he said he believed Republicans have crafted a strong messaging on the three fundamental issues that would still carry the day, even if the president’s favour numbers rise.
It’s possible that Michigan will be the most contentious state this year. For this election, for the first time ever, legislative districts were not drawn by the Legislature but rather by a separate panel. In 2010, Republicans created districts that suited their party in a state where voters were tightly split.
Last Words
The Republican Party is also targeting a couple of states where Democrats now hold chamber majorities. Republicans are going after Minnesota because it is one of only two states where the House of Representatives and the Senate are controlled by different parties. In addition, Duncan claimed that Colorado is up for grabs because Democrats control both houses of the state legislature there.
