AP: South at heart of close fight to control US Senate
ATLANTA (AP) — The South is where President Barack Obama and Democrats long have struggled, and it's where the party's toughest battleground will be this year in the fight for control of the U.S. Senate.
Three incumbents must face the consequences of having voted for Obama's health care law, but Republicans first must settle primaries in several states, including a challenge to Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.
All but one of the potentially competitive races is in a state Obama lost in 2012, and the president remains deeply unpopular among whites in the region. Republicans are optimistic they can achieve the six-seat gain needed to retake the Senate.
Democratic Sens. Kay Hagan of North Carolina, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana and Mark Pryor of Arkansas are on the ballot for the first time since voting for the Affordable Care Act in 2010. The law's wobbly start and its image as a power-grab have the incumbents on the defensive, emphasizing local issues and avoiding unnecessary mention of the second-term president who leads their party.
full: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/south-heart-close-fight-control-us-senate
FILE - These file photos show Democrats Senators, from left, Mary Landrieu, D-La., Mark Pryor, D-Ark., and Kay Hagan, D-N.C. The South, where President Barack Obama and his party have struggled for years, will be Democrats’ toughest battleground in the 2014 fight for control of the Senate. A trio of incumbents must face the consequences of having voted for Obama’s signature health care law, but first Republicans must settle primaries in several states, including a challenge to Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. (AP Photo/File)