Still reeling from the election, Democrats are eyeing a large slate of upcoming governor's races to jumpstart their grab for political power, Politico reports.
According to Politico, 27 of the 38 governorships up in 2017 and 2018 are currently held by Republicans. The gubernatorial races take in nearly every national battleground state, including Florida, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin.
"I don't think there's any question that 2018 will be a watershed year for the Democratic Party in the Midwest," said Joe Rugola, an Ohio labor leader and a member of the Democratic National Committee, according to Politico.
"We have to reverse some of the voter patterns we saw in 2016 or we're going to end up with two Americas."
Politico reports the Democrats have an opportunity to regain power in individual states more quickly than in Washington.
"Just on the number of people who will be term-limited out, and the number of open seats — any time that's available it gives us a very big opportunity to take back a state," Politico quotes Connecticut Gov. Dan Malloy, chairman of the Democratic Governors Association.
But Republicans are already gearing up for the fight.
"The DGA talked a big game for the 2016 gubernatorial races, but severely underperformed and lost even more states," Republican Governors Association spokesman Jon Thompson is quoted by Politico.
"Republicans may face a larger amount of open seats in 2018, but Democrats have routinely recruited gubernatorial candidates who are out of touch, struggle with Main Street issues and are unable to win."
The Chicago Tribune notes that the races for governor "could do a tremendous amount to set the party on the path out of the wilderness in the Age of Donald Trump."
The newspaper points out that by controlling the state, Democrats would also gain influence over redistricting of House seats — allowing the party to take back control of the U.S. House of Representatives.
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