This year we have a decent chance of electing Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire to replace John Sununu, and Kay Hagan of North Carolina to replace Elizabeth Dole. That would only be a pickup of one net woman in the Senate, but it would be a pickup of two for the Democratic caucus.
In 2010, there will be thirty-three senators up for reelection. And there is a real possibility that the Democrats will be in a position to add as many as eight new female senators. If Barack Obama wins the presidency, his senate seat will be filled by Gov. Rod Blagojevich. Two top prospects are Iraq War veteran Tammy Duckworth and Chicago-area Rep. Jan Schakowsky. Either one of them would face reelection to a full six-year term in 2010.
Governors Janet Napolitano and Kathleen Sebelius will be frontrunners to win their nominations. Napolitano would be looking to fill John McCain’s (probably open) seat. Kathleen Sebelius would be looking to fill Sam Brownback’s (probably open) seat.
In Connecticut the rumor is that Chris Dodd will not seek reelection. If true, Rep. Rosa DeLauro would have a good chance of winning the nomination. She’ll be 67 years old in 2010, so age could be a factor. But she’s the longest serving member of the congressional delegation, and she would have a good claim on the seat.
I expect Sen. Daniel Inouye of Hawaii to retire, opening up the possibility that freshman Rep. Mazie Hirino will fill his spot.
In Florida we could see Debbie Wasserman Schultz use her positions as Dem. Chief Deputy Whip and co-chair of the DCCC’s Red to Blue program to gain the nomination to take on unpopular Sen. Mel Martinez.
New Hampshire Republican Judd Gregg will probably seek reelection. One possible competitor is freshman Rep. Carol Shea-Porter.
Finally, I don’t know if Pennsylvania’s Arlen Specter will seek reelection or not. But I do know that Rep. Allyson Schwartz will be a formidable candidate if she chooses to challenge for the nomination to take over his seat.
Currently, only 16% of senators are women.
1. Sen. Boxer, Barbara (D-CA)
2. Sen. Cantwell, Maria (D-WA)
3. Sen. Clinton, Hillary (D-NY)
4. Sen. Collins, Susan (R-ME)
5. Sen. Dole, Elizabeth (R-NC)
6. Sen. Feinstein, Dianne (D-CA)
7. Sen. Hutchison, Kay Bailey (R-TX)
8. Sen. Klobuchar, Amy (D-MN)
9. Sen. Landrieu, Mary (D-LA)
10. Sen. Lincoln, Blanche (D-AR)
11. Sen. McCaskill, Claire (D-MO)
12. Sen. Mikulski, Barbara (D-MD)
13. Sen. Murkowski, Lisa (R-AK)
14. Sen. Murray, Patty (D-WA)
15. Sen. Snowe, Olympia (R-ME)
16. Sen. Stabenow, Debbie (D-MI)
Yet, if we were to win all of the races discussed above, that number would skyrocket to twenty-five percent. In the Democratic caucus, women would probably be at least a third of the caucus.
That would be nice to see.
“This year we have a decent chance of electing Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire to replace John Sununu.“
Replacing one Ayrab with another? How is THAT progress?!!!! ;o}
Her maiden name is Bowers. Do you have reason to believe she is of Arab decent? Not that it should matter.
She is of Lebanese descent, as I understand.
PLEASE
No Duckworth. Jan has earned a seat. Duckworth was a put up candidate by Rahmbo who cut her ahead of the line that Christine Cegelis –an actual progressive–was in. We don’t need any more corporate shills, male or female in the Senate.
I agree. Schakowsky would instantly move into position as one of the three most progressive senators.
But Duckworth has sacrificed a lot, too. I don’t like how Rahm treated that congressional race but I don’t blame Duckworth. And I really do believe that we’d be better off if half our senators were women.
Now, I’ll take Schakowsky over Duckworth. But I think Duckworth could be a good senator, too. She won’t get the job unless Obama approves it and therefore she would be a reliable vote for him on anything truly urgent.
So, I agree. But just because I want a strong progressive doesn’t mean Duckworth would be a terrible pick.
ya know boo, this is a lovely scenario…for 2010…but why don’t we just work on WINNING THE FUCKING ELECTION WE GOT?!
this thing is far from over, and most definitely not in the bag. respectfully, this kind of wishful thinking is a waste of your time, knowledge and abilities.
let’s concentrate on making this one a reality, otherwise all this goes in the tank.
Dude.
It’s Sunday night, a hurricane is bearing down on Louisiana, the GOP has suspended their convention. Is it really necessary for me to use this moment for one more hard hitting diary about this election?
Cut me some slack.
l’m in rather a foul mood… l’ve some good friends down there…who fortunately are now safely out of the way…who lost everything in katrina. talking with them today has just reinforced my desire to see these asshats run out of town on a rail.
l have a great deal of respect for your judgement and opinions, but my point still stands. the RATs aren’t taking time off from thinking about ways to spin this, regardless of the outcome, and l sincerely hope the worst doesn’t come to pass.
no offense intended.
l’m outta here…later.
It gets boring to only talk about the election. I like the seeds planted by such posts. It’s important to think ahead, and get familiar with upcoming politicians.
In July, I took an in-depth look at some high profile pick-up possibilities for Democratic female potential Senate candidates in 2010, including: Arizona’s Governor Janet Napolitano, Kansas’ Governor Kathleen Sebelius, Florida’s Chief Financial Office Alex Sink, Missouri’s Secretary of State Robin Carnahan, and many others.
Do not elect females simply because they possess a couple of X chromosomes!
We need better Congress-critters. Period.
Feinstein is absolutely loathsome. She is enabling Bush to torture and spy and turn our nation into a failed state. Why? Ask her war-profiteering hubby. Ask AIPAC. She puts pocketbook over patriotism.
I’d prefer a progressive in this seat, even if male.
Political positions and logic and capability to serve the constituency ought to count for more than skin color or religion or gender. BETTER Congress-critters!
Younger ones might shake up the power structure a bit. (How can somebody who has never emailed head up the committee on technology or understand all the various energy sources or ask pointed questions about computer privacy vs data-mining and domestic spying!) However, even youth isn’t an asset without intelligence and curiosity.
I would like to see more women in positions of power and responsibility… not because they are female, but because they are the best people for the job.
“Feinstein is absolutely loathsome.“
She is Lieberman Lite in a skirt.
With the Democrats organized, fired-up, and kicking ass, let us take a moment to consider how much Howard Dean has done to help get this Party turned in the right direction. He doesn’t get that much ink, but he is the guy who laid the foundation for the Obama movement.
Feinstein is making noises about running for Governor after Arnold finishes.
And Debbie Wasserman Schultz? Please, not her.
I’d rather see Feinstein in a position in which she cannot much about in foreign – specifically Middle Eastern – business. So, let her run for governor and let her win. It would be an improvement.
Absolutely. My Feinstein-loathing goes back to when I lived in San Francisco when Moscone and Milk were whacked by Dan White. In the race for mayor I voted for Jello Biafra over Feinstein. Think of how much better the world would have been…
Still, this means that the Dems need to come up with another candidate for Senator. Booman, any suggestions for us? Newsom?
Fuck No!
I agree with you about DiFi and would like to see her out of the senate.
but we desperately need a decent governor. she would be no improvement on Arnold.
Best place for Feinstein?
Ambassadorship to a small European country with oodles of culture and no borders near a war zone. Let her open museums in Luxembourg or greet people on Lake Geneva where she can make polite small talk about even smaller matters.
I’ve spent more than 30 years despising her, and it is time to get her out of power, not give her more.
First of all, I love that you’re always on this. A lot of people tend to not really care about the percentage of female elected officials. Very happy to see that you do and that you consistently post on this issue.
Also, this year is pretty much a shame for Democrats. To have only four out of 35 Senate races this year with a female nominee (including one incumbent) is pretty bad. One can only hope 2010 will be better.
I agree with you on Illinois, Pennsylvania, Kansas and Arizona.
I differ a little on your other examples. I hope Rosa DeLauro will get a job in the administration (maybe OMB) and there are several other women in Connecticut to run for that seat: SoS Susan Bysiewicz, Treas. Denise Nappier, Comptroller Nancy Wyman.
In Hawaii, there’s also the possibility of State Senate Pres. Colleen Hanabusa running for Inouye’s seat (btw, because his bff Ted Stevens will leave this year I’m almost 100% sure he’ll retire.)
In NH (if Gov. Lynch isn’t running) there’s also the possibility of State House Speaker Terie Norelli or State Sen. Pres. Sylvia Larsen.
In Florida I see State CFO Alex Sink as more likely than DWS.
In other states:
possible Dem retirements:
MD: if Mikulski should retire, Donna Edwards would be awesome
NV: if Harry Reid should retire (don’t expect him to but have a funny feeling about this one) State AG Catherine Cortez Masto would be the most likely candidate.
other Republican seats:
GA: I’d love to see Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin run.
IA: Lt. Gov and fmr. Agriculture Commissioner Patty Judge would be a great candidate here.
KY: the only conceivable female possibility here is State Auditor Crit Luallen
LA: taking on David Vitter oughta be fun. Though I think it’s more likely we’ll see one of the guys run for this one.
MO: best chance for this seat would be SoS Robin Carnahan
NC: would Kay Hagan run again if she doesn’t beat Dole this year?
OH: SoS Jennifer Brunner or Rep. Betty Sutton though Tim Ryan seems to be a fav. among the netroots though he has a pretty mixed record on abortion (getting 100% by NARAL in 2007, 0% in 2006).
SC: Maybe we’ll see a rerun of DeMint vs Tenenbaum, hopefully with Inez Tenenbaum winning this time around.
SD: I guess this one really depends on who will run for Gov. If Sen. Thune runs for Gov. it’s more likely that Stephanie Herseth Sandlin runs for the Senate, if Thune runs for reelection Herseth Sandlin will probably run for Gov.
UT: The most unlikely pick up opportunity for the Democrats. But with a possible retirement of Bob Bennett former State AG Jan Graham could have a small chance. If she were to run. She’s been out of public life for eight years but won statewide twice as a Dem.