Politics
4 Key Contests Could Tip Power in U.S. House
Only a handful of seats are in play, but they will be pivotal in who wins a majority.
T B
KAPTUR BY JOHN GIZZI
he wafer-thin 219-213 gop House majority, plus three vacancies, means that just a handful of races will
decide who wields the speaker’s Ohio District 9
Last Hurrah for House Veteran?
y any political yardstick, Rep. Marcy Kaptur should
have lost in 2022. Redistricting had increased
GOP strength in her historically Democrat district and many thought it was time for Kaptur — who first came to Congress in 1982 and is today the longest-serving woman in the House — to finally retire. Now 78 and running again, Kaptur may not be so lucky. Republicans handily nominated state legislator and reliable conservative Derek Merrin. Backed by Donald
MERRIN
Trump and an ally of Ohio’s popular Gov. Mike DeWine, Merrin is running with a GOP
firmly united behind him. Kaptur has the backing of
organized labor behind her, and is one of five Democrats to hold House districts won by Trump in ’20. But if Trump carries this Toledo- based district by at least 11 percentage points, this could be her last hurrah.
44 NEWSMAX | AUGUST 2024
gavel in January. Thanks to the latest redistricting,
only about 25-30 seats are in play. The rest are safe in Republican or Democrat hands. But the question of “who rules” is
Michigan District 7
Barrett on Rebound
T
wo years ago, U.S. Army veteran and state Sen. Tom
Barrett lost a race in Michigan’s District 7 (Lansing area) to Democrat Rep. Elissa Slotkin by a margin of 52%-46%. The contest drew national attention because it was the most expensive House race of all 435. With Slotkin leaving the seat
to run for the Senate, Barrett is back and local GOPers feel sure he can beat former Democrat state Sen. Curtis Hertel Jr. The namesake son of a
former co-speaker of the state House and nephew of a onetime congressman, Hertel has had a charmed political life. “Hertel has lived off his name,” Norm Shinkle, co- chair of the Ingham County Republican Party, told Newsmax. “He has never had a contested primary — the Democrats just gave it all to him, from county commissioner to register of deeds to the state Senate.”
BARRETT HERTEL JR.
complicated by the retirement, res- ignation, pursuit of higher offi ce, or death by no fewer than 60 House members — the highest number to head for the exits since 1992. Here are four contests that are up
in the air and whose outcomes will be pivotal as to how the House looks after November.
North Carolina District 1
Throwing Hard Elbows
T
he most closely watched race in North Carolina
hands down is that of Democrat Rep. Don Davis. Two years ago, Davis won his first term with 52% of the vote. With the
DAVIS BUCKHOUT
Republican- ruled legislature making District 1 more Republican, Davis faces a well-funded and hard-hitting opponent in businesswoman
Laurie Buckhout, a retired U.S. Army colonel. Using mountains of her own
money, Buckhout has called out Davis as an ally of President Joe Biden, branding him responsible for high inflation. Davis has been hitting hard
at the Republican hopeful for her strong anti-abortion stand. The outcome “will be
determined by the success of the parties’ ground game and how well the candidates for president do,” said onetime state Sen. Phil Kirk, a former head of the state chamber of commerce.
Virginia District 7
Green Beret and Whistleblower
T
his is sure to be one of the most-watched House races.
The Democrat nominee, retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Eugene Vindman, gained worldwide fame as a National Security Council staff er who helped reveal then-President Donald Trump’s phone call to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to inquire about the business dealings of Hunter Biden in his country. Vindman’s
testimony before Congress led to Trump’s first impeachment (ending with acquittal) and was key to his raising $5 million to win a three-way primary. With Democrat Rep. Abigail
Spanberger relinquishing District 7 (which stretches from the Richmond area to the Washington, D.C., suburbs) to run for governor, Vindman will square off against Republican Derrick Anderson. A lawyer and former Green
Beret who was born in the district, Anderson slammed Vindman as a “carpetbagger.”
VINDMAN
ANDERSON
BUCKHOUT©FACEBOOK
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