Check out the website: https://lenspoliticalnotes.com Look at the recent Political Notes and Len’s Letters on the website Incumbents:
Colorado is the northeast member of the Four Corner States – the only four states that meet at a single point. The other three states are New Mexico (Southeast), Arizona (Southwest), and Utah (Northwest). Among them they have 8 Senators and 24 Members of congress.
US Senate.
The AZ race is competitive. Political Note #387 Democratic incumbent Mark Kelly vs one of five Republicans seeking the nomination.
Colorado Political Note #457 Democratic incumbent Michael Bennet vs one of three Republicans seeking the nomination.
Utah Political Note #427. In this heavily Republican state Independent Evan McMullin is a good person to support against the Republican incumbent although there will be a Democrat in the race.
Governor
The AZ race may be the only competitive one.
AZ Political Note #402 SoS Katie Hobbs vs one of 4 Republicans
CO Democratic incumbent Jared Polis vs one of 3 Republicans
NM Democratic incumbent Michelle Lujan Grisham v one of 4 Republicans
Down Ballot. NM races are not competitive
AZ AG 3 Democrats v 4 Republicans
AZ SoS Political Note #437 State House Minority Leader Reginald Bolding v one of 3 Republicans
CO AG Incumbent Democrat Phil Weiser vs DA John Kellner
CO SoS Incumbent Democrat Jena Griswold vs one of 2 Republicans
Competitive Congressional races
AZ 01 5 Democrats seeking the nomination to run against vulnerable Republican incumbent Dave Schweikert in this R+7 leaning district
AZ 02 Political Note #389 Incumbent Democrat Tom O’Halleran running against one of 6 Republicans in a district that has been gerrymandered to be more than likely R+15
AZ 04 Incumbent Democrat Greg Stanton vs one of 6 Republicans in a district gerrymandered to D+1 make him vulnerable
AZ 06 Open Democratic seat gerrymandered to R+7 with 3 Democrats and 7 Republicans running
CO 07 Open Democratic seat State Senator Brittany Petterson vs one of 2 Republicans in the D+6 leaning seat.
CO 08 New Seat State Rep Yadera Caraveo vs one of 5 Republicans in an R+3 toss-up seat.
NM 02 Political Note #423 City Councilor Gabe Vasquez versus Incumbent Republican Yvette Herrell in this seat redistricted to be a toss-up D+4
NM 03 Incumbent Democrat Teresa Leger Fernandez vs one of 2 Republicans in this district redistricted to be a toss-up D+5
Check out the website: https://lenspoliticalnotes.com Look at the recent Political Notes and Len’s Letters on the website.
March 26th , 2022 Political Note #457 Michael Bennet Colorado US Senate
2022 General Election
My main career was as a school superintendent; 25 years in a district composed of five small towns in Western Massachusetts. It gives me a special pleasure to recommend a former school superintendent to my readers. Previously, I recommended Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers for reelection to you (see Political Note #366). Today, I recommend Michael Bennet, the US Senator from Colorado who is running for reelection.
Michael Bennet’s last job, before he was appointed to a vacancy as US Senator from Colorado, was as Denver’s School Superintendent. He was not trained to be a politician; he was not trained to be a school administrator. He was, however, expected to be an American leader, especially if you look at his father’s pedigree. Not so much if you look at his mother’s.
Michael Bennet’s father, Douglas Bennet, was the son of an economic advisor to FDR. Douglas Bennet had a BA from Wesleyan, an MA from Berkeley, and a PhD from Harvard. His first job was as an aide to Chester Bowles, then the Ambassador to India. Returning to the US, he considered politics. He announced for and withdrew from a race for Congress. He tried again, but was defeated by eventual Senator Chris Dodd. He worked as an aide for a series of US Senators until he was appointed the head of the US Agency for International Development. He headed a private institute and then headed NPR for ten years. In 1995, he was appointed president of Wesleyan University.
Michael Bennet’s mother, Susanne Klejman, had a different life. She was a Holocaust survivor, born in Warsaw in 1938. She and her parents survived the Warsaw Ghetto, but not exactly as an intact family. Michael Bennet’s mother was a toddler in the Ghetto. Her parents arranged for her to be smuggled out to the countryside. The baby’s mother, Michael Bennet’s grandmother escaped with nuns, perhaps wearing a habit. Without her daughter, she remained in the protection of the convent for the duration of the war. Michael Bennet’s grandfather survived the Labor Camp after surviving the Warsaw Ghetto.
There are few Senators who have as clear an appreciation of what is happening in Ukraine as Michael Bennet. His grandparents were reunited in 1945 and then were united with their daughter in the rural area to which she had been smuggled. His grandfather, who had owned an art gallery in Germany, had shipped a few works of art successfully before being sent to the Warsaw Ghetto. After the war, he was able to recover some of those art works to sell for sustenance and travel. The family’s route to the US involved a lot of travel. First Stockholm and then Mexico City. Michael Bennet’s mother, twelve years old when they finally got to New York, was the family’s interpreter in an art-oriented city where her father eventually created a new art gallery.
Michael Bennet grew up in Washington, DC. He went to the toney St. Alban’s School and served as a page in the Senate. Like his father, he went to Wesleyan. He stayed in Connecticut to get a JD from Yale where he was Editor-in-Chief of the Law Journal. Before law school, he served as an aide to the governor of Ohio. After law school, he clerked, worked in private practice, and then in the Attorney General’s office.
Michael Bennet and his fiancé decided to do exactly that. They moved to Montana and then to Denver where he worked for six years in an investment company advising corporations. He took some time to advise his fellow Wesleyan alum John Hickenlooper on his campaign for mayor. After Hickenlooper was elected, Michael Bennet became his chief of staff. In 2005, the Denver Board of Education made a political choice and hired Michael Bennet as Superintendent of Schools. When he left for the Senate, the Denver Post described his accomplishments: “Bennet has been a force—pushing reforms and steering the [Denver school] district to a culture of success.”
After his 2009 appointment, Michael Bennet was elected to the Senate in 2010 by 1.5 points. He was elected again in 2016 by 5.5 points. Michael Bennet has been a main stream Liberal. On cultural issues, he has supported same-sex marriage, pressed for gun safety (though he opposed restoring the assault weapons ban), abortion rights and Planned Parenthood. He has been an advocate for steps to check climate change (though he supported the Keystone pipeline) and has favored ways to make citizenship possible for immigrants through military service.
Michael Bennet took a flyer on a Presidential run in 2020, but didn’t fly far. Now he has to make sure he will get elected to the Senate. Colorado seems to have become a Democratic state. Nevertheless, his reelection is not certain. (Consider Virginia.) The Cook Report describes the Seat as Likely Democratic. There is enough of a hint of vulnerability there to make us worry. Erase that worry. Make a donation.
The Cook Report projects has downgraded the likelihood of winning for some of the most vulnerable Incumbent Democrats. These are people we have to defend.
Vulnerable Incumbent Senators to support
Arizona Mark Kelly (Toss up) https://markkelly.com
Colorado Michael Bennet (Likely D) https://michaelbennet.com
Georgia Raphael Warnock (Toss up) https://warnockforgeorgia.com
Nevada Catherine Cortez Masto (Toss up) https://catherinecortezmasto.com
New Hampshire Maggie Hassan (Lean D) https://maggiehassan.com
Challengers to support
Florida Congresswoman Val Demings https://valdemings.com versus Marco Rubio (Lean R)
Indiana Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr https://www.gomcdermott.com is less probable than some others, but could surprise (Solid R according to Cook)
Iowa Ex Congresswoman Abby Finkenauer https://abbyfinkenauer.com is challenging Chuck Grassley, seeking his 8th term (Solid R according to Cook)
Kentucky 2020 Senate Candidate Charles Booker https://charlesbooker.org is running against Rand Paul (Solid R according to Cook)
North Carolina Former Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court Cherie Beasley https://cheribeasley.com is running for the US Senate to fill the open created because Richard Burr is retiring. (Toss up)
Ohio Congressman Tim Ryan https://timforoh.com is seeking the open seat created because Rob Portman is retiring (Lean R)
Pennsylvania Lt. Governor John Fetterman https://johnfetterman.com is the probable nominee for the open seat created because Pat Toomey is retiring (Toss up)
Independent Challenger to Support
Utah Ex CIA Officer Evan McMullin https://evanmcmullin.com is targeting Republican Senator Mike Lee (Solid R according to Cook, Possible Ind. According to me)
More challengers to come
Wisconsin Republican Ron Johnson is vulnerable (Toss Up). Nine Democrats are currently in the race; a few are still thinking about running.
Missouri Republican Roy Blunt is retiring. (Solid R according to Cook) Either of the Democratic candidates might have a shot if Missouri Republicans nominate the wrong candidate.
Alabama Republican Richard Shelby is retiring. (Solid R) Is there a Democrat in Alabama who can create a Doug Jones-like surprise if the Republicans nominate the most offensive candidate?
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Help create a larger Democratic majority in the Senate that does not rely on the agreement of one or two Senators.
