Indiana: The fight to replace Rep. Tim Roemer, D-Ind., has been expensive and nasty. In a sign of just how close, and how crucial, this race is, Bush dropped in Thursday to support Republican Chris Chocola in his race against former Rep. Jill Long Thompson, the Democrat.
Maryland: The newly drawn district represented by moderate Republican Connie Morella has gotten much more Democratic. This suburban Washington district was first host of a nasty Democratic primary in which Chris Van Hollen defeated Mark Shriver, son of Eunice Kennedy and Sergeant Shriver. Despite support from gun-control groups and a moderate voting record, Morella is considered among the GOP's most vulnerable.
New Mexico: The race to replace 11-term Rep. Joe Skeen, R-N.M., pits two fairly conservative candidates against each other. Democrat John Smith, a state senator, is trying to appeal to conservatives, refusing fundraising help from House liberals like Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, D-Mo. Democrats are hoping a strong Latino turnout will give Smith a boost over former state Rep. Steve Pearce, the Republican nominee.
New York: Rep. Felix Grucci, R-N.Y., is in an unexpectedly competitive race, thanks in part to a failed attack against his opponent, Democrat Timothy Bishop. Grucci, a member of the famous Grucci fireworks family, alleged that Bishop "turned his back" on rape victims when Bishop was a college administrator. A lawsuit was filed to force Grucci to pull the ads off the air.
Pennsylvania: Twenty-year veteran Rep. George Gekas, the Republican, and five-term Rep. Tim Holden, the Democrat, face off because of redistricting, and both parties are pouring money into the race.
South Dakota: With Rep. John Thune, R-S.D., vacating his seat to run for the Senate, Gov. Bill Janklow carries the Republican torch against Democrat Stephanie Herseth.
The Governorships
Alabama: Democratic Gov. Don Siegelman is facing a tough challenge from Rep. Bob Riley, R-Ala., who gave up his safe House seat to challenge Siegelman. The governor has had difficulty selling his plan for a state lottery to help fund new education proposals in the state, and new polls show him trailing the Republican challenger by as many as eight points.
Arizona: Republicans have dominated politics in the state for decades, but Janet Napolitano, a Democrat, has led Rep. Matt Salmon, R-Ariz., and polls show her clinging to a slight lead. But momentum in the race is said to be with Salmon.
Florida: To beat the president's brother in a state that has come to symbolize the nation's political divide would be a political coup for Democrats. But that chance seems to have evaporated in recent days, thanks in part to Democrat Bill McBride's lackluster performance in a recent debate against Gov. Jeb Bush. Democrats are still holding out hope, sending Bill Clinton and Al Gore, separately, to campaign for McBride, but some polls now have Bush with as much as a 15-point lead.
Massachusetts: In one of the country's nastiest governor's races, state treasurer Shannon O'Brien, a Democrat, has called Republican Mitt Romney "the face of corporate greed," while Romney has tried to convince voters he can salvage the state's economic problems the way he rescued the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City.
Maryland: Democrats have reigned here since Republican Spiro Agnew was elected governor in 1966. But while Democrats enjoy a large majority in the state registration-wise, Rep. Bob Ehrlich, R-Md., has made his appeal to voters as a moderate and is running even in the polls. Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend's campaign may be determined ultimately by black voter turnout, which may explain why she has called former president Clinton in to campaign for her twice in the final days of the campaign.
Tennessee: After Al Gore's stinging defeat in his home state two years ago, a loss that cost the former vice president a promotion, former Nashville mayor Phil Bredesen is trying to show that Democrats have a future in Tennessee. But Rep. Van Hilleary, R-Tenn., is hoping conservative turnout propels him to victory. As part of that appeal, the Tennessee Republican Party sent a mailer criticizing Bredesen for promoting a school curriculum that "mandated the teaching of Buddhism and Hinduism to second-graders" while he was mayor of Nashville. Bredesen said the mailer amounted to "religious bigotry."
