November 8, 2006, 4:34 pm
House Calls: 11 Seats Still Undecided
By Sarah Wheaton
Democrats have won 228 House seats at this point, Republicans 196. But plenty of the season’s most-watched races are still up in the air as of 4:00 p.m.
Connecticut’s Second Congressional District
Democrats were hoping to knock off three Republican incumbents in this state, but so far, they’ve only been successful with one, Representative Nancy Johnson. Representative Chris Shays managed to hang on. That leaves Representative Rob Simmons, who, with all the precincts reporting, is trailing Joe Courtney, the Democrat, by only 170 votes. Candidates are looking to absentee ballots and a recount.
New Mexico’s First C.D.
We’ve been biting our nails all season watching this one, and now we’re down to the quick. Representative Heather Wilson is just one half of a percentage point ahead of Patricia Madrid, and just under 1 percent of the precincts remain unreported.
North Carolina’s Eighth C.D.
Representative Robin Hayes, a Republican, has claimed victory. But the surprisingly strong grassroots Democratic challenger, Larry Kissell, has refused to concede based on the 468-vote margin, and a recount appears likely.
Wyoming’s At-Large C.D.
Representative Barbara Cubin didn’t look like she would face tough competition until she made a comment about hitting a wheelchair-bound third-party candidate after a debate a few weeks ago. She is slightly ahead of Gary Trauner, the Democrat, and has declared herself the victor, but a recount remains a possibility.
Pennsylvania’s Eighth C.D.
Patrick Murphy, the Democratic candidate, is about half a percentage point ahead of Representative Mike Fitzpatrick with all precincts reporting, but we’re waiting for all the absentee and provisional ballots to be counted before we call the race.
Georgia’s 12th C.D.
The general storyline has been about Democrats unseating Republicans, but there were two vulnerable Democrats in Georgia. Jim Marshall survived in Georgia’s 8th, but the votes are still being counted in Representative John Barrow’s 12th District. So far, he’s ahead of Max Burns, the Republican, by a narrow margin.
Ohio’s 15th C.D.
Despite a deficit of five percentage points, Mary Jo Kilroy, the Democratic candidate, has refused to concede to Representative Deborah Pryce pending the tally of tens of thousands of absentee and provisional ballots.
Ohio’s Second C.D.
Representative Jean Schmidt appears to have fended off Victoria Wulsin, a Democrat, but we’re not quite ready to call it yet.
Washington’s 8th C.D.
Officials have only counted about half of the ballots in the race between Representative Dave Reichert and Darcy Burner, the Democratic challenger.
RUNOFFS
Louisiana’s Second C.D.
Representative William Jefferson, a Democrat embroiled in corruption allegations, faced a crowded field and won a plurality of 30 percent. According to Louisiana’s election rules, he will face the second-place winner, Karen Carter, a Democratic state representative, in a runoff on December 9. Since both candidates are Democrats, this will not have an impact on the balance of power in the House. Full results
Texas’s 23rd C.D.
Representative Henry Bonilla’s district was redrawn in 2003 by the Texas legislature in order to protect him. But the Supreme Court didn’t like it, saying it diluted the Hispanic vote, and judges redrew it over the summer. In this district and the other four that were similarly drawn, Tuesday’s vote represented a special election in which a candidate would need to receive over 50 percent of votes to avoid a runoff. Because he only received 48 percent, Mr. Bonilla will face Ciro Rodriguez, the Democrat in second place, in a runoff.
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/?p=639
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