Senate Retirements Bode Well for GOP in 2012

Three senators have retired in the past two weeks – a Democrat, an independent who caucused with Democrats and a Republican. That’s good news for Republicans as they seek to win the four seats needed to regain control of the Senate in next year’s elections. Democrats have to defend 23 seats next year, while the GOP only has 10 at risk, The Hill reports.

The best news so far was North Dakota Democratic Sen. Kent Conrad’s (pictured) decision to hang up his sport coat. “Conrad's retirement just about hands Republicans a Senate seat in North Dakota next year -- a state where the GOP scored two big wins in 2010 and Democrats don't have much of a bench to speak of,” The Hill states.

"North Dakota was very good news for Senate Republicans," says Brian Walsh, spokesman for the National Republican Senatorial Committee. He says the committee expects more Democrats to bow out before 2012.

The other two most recent retirements were Sens. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas.