This is my view of the top 30 Democratic challengers for the House. It leaves out Christine Jennings in Florida 13 as that district is still contested. There are other districts Democrats can win in 2008, but we need credible candidates.
This is in order of my perception of their ability to win. I'm not an insider, so my perception could be wrong.
Additions? Corrections? Disagreements? Comments?
1.Larry Kissell, North Carolina 8, 2006 nominee
2.Martin Heinrich, New Mexico 1, Albuquerque City Council President
3.Linda Stender, New Jersey 7, 2006 nominee
4.Jim Berryman, Michigan 7, Former State Senator
5.Gary Trauner, Wyoming, 2006 nominee
6.Angie Paccione, Colorado 4, 2006 nominee
7.Jim Himes, Connecticut 4
8.Arizona 1, several candidates
9.Eric Massa, New York 29, 2006 nominee
10.Darcy Burner, Washington 8, 2006 nominee
11.Dan Maffei, New York 25, 2006 nominee
12.Mary Jo Kilroy, Ohio 15, 2006 nominee
13.Victoria Wulsin, Ohio 2, 2006 nominee
14.Steve Dreihaus, Ohio 1, State Representative
15.Dan Seals, Illinois 10, 2006 nominee
16.Jonathon Powers, New York 26
17.Charlie Brown, California 4, 2006 nominee
18.John Boccieri, Ohio 16, State Senator
19.John Unger, West Virginia 2, State Senator
20.Kay Barnes, Missouri 6, Mayor of Kansas City
21.Kyle Faust, Pennsyvania 6, Erie County Commissioner
22.Larry Grant, Idaho 1, 2006 nominee
23.Paul Rancatore, Florida 15
24.William O'Neal, Ohio 14, State Appeals Court Judge
25.Paul Ahronson, New Jersey 5, 2006 nominee
26.Brydon Jackson, Virginia 5
27.Bill Kennedy, Montana, Yellowstone County Commissioner
28.Jim Esch, Nebrasks 2, 2006 nominee
29.Dan Grant, Texas 10
30.Selden Spencer, Iowa 4, 2006 nominee
And a bonus
31.Judy Feder, Virginia 10, 2006 nominee
For those who don't think rerunners can win, there is a poll that shows Democratic generic congressional candidates are up over 2006:
http://politicalwire.com/...
"Democrats Gain Ground in Battleground Districts
The first Democracy Corps battleground poll of 70 key congressional districts -- half Democratic and half Republican -- shows named Democratic congressional candidates "hold on average a 9-point lead in these districts that actually supported the Republican candidate by 1 point in 2006 and President Bush by 8 points in 2004. That means the center of the battlefield has shifted as much since 2006 as it did in the lead up to it."
Key finding: "Democrats enter the 2008 race in a strong position to readily defend their own seats while expanding their 2006 electoral gains. Democratic incumbents hold a significant lead in the battleground districts, winning the congressional vote by 20 points -- 56 to 36 percent. Obviously, there are some special cases, but the consistency across all types of Democratic seats makes it difficult for the Republicans to find many Democratic targets. Indeed, Democratic incumbents’ electoral advantage is as strong in their most vulnerable districts -- those held by freshmen who picked up new seats in 2006, as it is in the least competitive districts."
Complete survey results are available."