Republicans Have a Great Chance to Retake the Senate in 2024 – By Lindsay Wise (Wall Street Journal) / Dec 31, 2023
But they did in 2022, too — abortion access, economy and Trump’s legal troubles are seen as unpredictable factors
WASHINGTON—The GOP has an edge in the fight for control of the Senate headed into next year’s elections, as Democrats work to defend key seats in states that former Republican President Donald Trump won decisively in 2020.
But party strategists and political analysts see abortion, the economy, GOP candidate selection and Trump’s legal troubles as wild cards that could affect Republican chances and perhaps enable Democrats to hang onto their narrow Senate majority.
There are 34 Senate races in 2024. Democrats and Democratic-aligned independents occupy 23 of the seats, eight of which are rated competitive or vulnerable by Inside Elections, a nonpartisan publication that analyzes House and Senate races. Republicans are only defending 11 seats, all of them in states won by Trump in 2020. Of those, only the Texas seat held by Sen. Ted Cruz is rated competitive.
“The Senate majority is firmly in play, and Republicans have a great opportunity to win control of the Senate,” said Nathan Gonzales, editor and publisher of Inside Elections. “But we’ve seen Republicans throw away opportunities before.”
