The Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC) is hopeful of flipping four Democrat-controlled state legislatures in the upcoming midterm elections.
The RSLC upgraded Nevada, Maine, Oregon, and Washington as “opportunities to flip” on its legislative target list on Wednesday.
The RSLC’s decision comes after polling found that Republicans are either leading or within the margin of error on the state legislative generic ballot in those four states.
For example, Republicans have a two-point advantage in Nevada’s state legislative generic ballot, with 48 percent compared to the Democrat’s 46 percent. In Maine, Republicans trail Democrats by just one point on the state legislative generic ballot.
In Oregon, just 36 percent of voters think their state is headed in the right direction, while 56 percent think it is going in the wrong direction.
Further, Washington Republicans are down by just two points on the state legislative generic ballot, coming in at 46 percent compared to the Democrat’s 48 percent.
The RSLC previously listed these four states as places to “make meaningful gains” when it released its first set of legislative targets in March.
RSLC President Dee Duncan said the committee is committed to “making Democrats sweat to defend every inch of ground they currently hold.” Duncan said:
Even in states that President Biden won by double digits in 2020, Democrat majorities are anything but safe. Americans are looking to their state legislatures to serve as a check and balance on the President’s failing economic policies, giving state Republicans an opening to go on offense in places we normally don’t contest.
“While flipping chambers in these deep blue states will be an uphill battle, we are committed to maximizing the favorable political environment by expanding our map and making Democrats sweat to defend every inch of ground they currently hold,” Duncan continued.
In addition to the four newly added states, RSLC’s target list of flippable legislatures includes Colorado and Minnesota. State Republicans hope to make meaningful gains in the liberal strongholds of Illinois, Maryland, New Mexico, and New York.