President Joe Biden's low approval ratings have encouraged Republicans to expand the battleground map heading into November's midterm elections, The Hill reported.
The emboldened GOP now is looking at gubernatorial, House and Senate races outside of traditional swing states, accoridng to The Hill.
Republicans now consider gubernatorial races in New Mexico and Connecticut, as well as Senate races in Colorado and Washington, in play.
"This year, the first midterm after a president's been elected with both houses of Congress, it sets up really well," one GOP strategist with experience working in Colorado told The Hill.
"And there's been nothing, literally nothing to date, that looks to disrupt a really, really positive environment for candidates running in red, purple and blue areas. That's why the map has a really huge opportunity to stretch."
Polls showed that Republican prospects to regain control of Congress were strengthened by Biden's disastrous withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. GOP momentum has continued due to such issues as mask and vaccine mandates, the migrant crisis at the southern border, rising inflation, and Russia invading Ukraine.
"This is always the kind of environment where [upset victories are] going to happen," one GOP strategist working on Senate and gubernatorial race told The Hill.
"1994 sent some real characters to Washington, people who maybe didn't have business being there, but who because of the nature of the election cycle had found themselves surprisingly winning. I think this is the year that could produce some surprising results."
Both Republicans and Democrats likely will spend the bulk of their time and money on key swing states such as Arizona, Georgia, Nevada and Pennsylvania, The Hill said.
Strong showings in New Jersey and Virginia gubernatorial races last year, though, have resulted in Republicans casting their collective net wider.
The Hill reported that Republicans started allocating staff and money for ad buys and touting strong candidate recruitment in states such as New Mexico and Colorado – states that potentially could be included in a red wave.
House races against some Democrats who saw double-digit wins in 2020, as well as Connecticut's gubernatorial race and Washington state's Senate race also fall in that category.
Incumbents who could be targeted include Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, D-N.M., who's facing criticism over a $150,000 sexual harassment settlement reached with a former male staffer; Gov. Ned Lamont, D-Conn., who could face a rematch with businessman Bob Stefanowski; and Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., who's in a virtual tie with a generic Republican, The Hill reported.
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