West
Six House seats that could flip from blue to red in 2024, potentially giving GOP a bigger majority
A handful of House seats currently held by Democrats could flip in the 2024 elections, giving Republicans a potential sigh of relief as they seek to build on their slim majority.
All 435 seats in the House are up for grabs this cycle amid the GOP’s fight to pick up seats in districts that favor right-wing candidates. That fight will likely take place in districts that were won, or narrowly lost, by Republicans in recent elections.
Republicans currently hold a 218-to-213 majority in the chamber. Amid the resignations and departures by several Republicans from the House in recent months, that number is expected to fall even further on April 19, when Wisconsin GOP Rep. Mike Gallagher, the chairman of the House select committee on China, leaves Congress.
The Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan election analyst, currently ranks 11 Democrat-held seats as “Toss Up” races this cycle. Several of those races also include districts won, or nearly won, by former President Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election.
REPUBLICANS BLAST DEPARTING GOP LAWMAKERS AS RAZOR-THIN MAJORITY FUELS FEARS OF DEM TAKEOVER
Six House seats currently held by Democrats could flip in the 2024 elections, giving Republicans the ability to expand their slim majority in the chamber. (Getty Images)
Of the many races, here are six House seats currently held by Democrats that could flip in 2024:
Maine’s 2nd Congressional District
Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, is looking to continue his representation of Maine’s 2nd Congressional District — a position he has held since 2019 — in the state’s November election.
Two Republicans are running in the state’s June 11 primary election, which uses a ranked-choice voting method, to challenge Golden — Maine state Rep. Michael Soboleski and Austin Theriault, a former NASCAR driver who also serves in the state House.
Once characterized by Politico as one of the “Trumpiest seats” for Democrats to defend, the district categorized as a “Democrat Toss Up” by the Cook Political Report covers four-fifths of the state, including the cities of Lewiston, Bangor and Auburn.
Despite the odds that are reportedly stacked against him in terms of voter demographics, Golden, a Marine Corps veteran who has bucked his party on a number of issues in recent years while serving as a co-chair of the Blue Dog Coalition, has won the seat three times — in 2018, 2020 and 2021.
Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, at the U.S. Capitol on March 6, 2024. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Ohio’s 9th Congressional District
Currently represented by longtime Rep. Marcy Kaptur, Ohio’s 9th Congressional District is a seat that Republicans are looking to pick up in the state’s 2024 election.
Kaptur, a Toledo native who has represented the recently redrawn Ohio district in the House since 1983, is currently the longest serving woman in the history of Congress.
But that could all change later this year as Kaptur, whose votes align with President Biden’s interests nearly 100% of the time, plans to face off against Derek Merrin, her Republican challenger in the race.
Merrin, who was endorsed by Trump just prior to the state’s GOP primary election last month, currently serves as a state representative. He previously served as a councilman and as mayor of the City of Waterville.
The race has been labeled by the Cook Political Report as a “Democrat Toss Up” in 2024.
Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, has represented Ohio’s 9th Congressional District since 1983. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
HOUSE GOP CAMPAIGN ARM RAKES IN OVER $33 MILLION TO KICK OFF 2024 ELECTION BATTLES
Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District
In Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District, Democratic Rep. Matt Cartwright is looking to retain his post in the House.
Cartwright has voted nearly in lock-step with Biden since assuming office in 2019, giving Republicans who have largely focused on the economy and other topics like immigration and crime something to talk about.
Though the primary elections in the state won’t take place until April 23, Cartwright, the presumed nominee for his party, is likely to face off against Rob Bresnahan Jr., the sole Republican challenging him.
Bresnahan has served as the chief financial officer and CEO of a family business, an electrical contracting company, since the age of 16, and his website states that he is “uniquely qualified to send a jolt of energy through Congress and deliver results” for the residents of Northeastern Pennsylvania.
The race has been labeled by the Cook Political Report as a “Democrat Toss Up” in 2024.
Rep. Matt Cartwright, D-Pa., has represented Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District since 2019. (Getty Images)
Washington’s 3rd Congressional District
Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Wash., also co-chair of the moderate Democrats’ Blue Dog Coalition in the House, is seeking re-election to the House after serving a single term in office representing Washington’s 3rd Congressional District.
Perez is running in a race that has been labeled by the Cook Political Report as a “Democrat Toss Up” in 2024.
Perez, who was first elected to the House in 2022, is one of five candidates who will take part in the state’s nonpartisan primary election on August 6.
The current Republican candidates looking to unseat the congresswoman include U.S. Army veteran Joe Kent, who ran against Perez in 2022 and narrowly lost, as well as Leslie French and Leslie Lewallen.
Kent, according to his campaign website, is “focused on restoring common sense Republican values and defeating the woke extremist Democrat Congresswoman Marie Perez.”
Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Wash., was first elected to the House in 2022. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
SCALISE BRINGS IN EYE-POPPING $12M AS GOP KICKS OFF 2024 BATTLE TO KEEP HOUSE
Alaska’s At-Large Congressional District
Alaska Rep. Mary Peltola, the first Democrat to represent Alaska’s at-large congressional district in nearly 50 years, is hoping to earn the support of Alaskans through its ranked-choice voting method later this year.
Peltola, who was elected to serve a full term in the House in 2022 and has worked to portray herself as a moderate ever since, previously served for a decade as a member of the Alaska state House.
An Alaska native, Peltola is now gearing up for a political showdown for the Last Frontier as she prepares to take on Republican candidates Nick Begich and Nancy Dahlstrom, the state’s current lieutenant governor, in Alaska’s August 20 primary election.
Peltola, who also serves as a co-chair of the Blue Dog Coalition, has faced criticism from her GOP challengers for failing to vote in favor of the interests of Alaska residents.
“We like Mary as a person, but we don’t like her voting record. She’s not speaking for Alaskans,” Dahlstrom told Fox News Digital earlier this year.
Similarly, Begich told Fox that “voters are furious” with the way Peltola has represented Alaska on the federal level.
Rep. Mary Peltola has represented Alaska in the House since 2022. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Michigan’s 7th Congressional District
Another House seat, Michigan’s 7th Congressional District, is an open seat that many in the political sphere are paying close attention to after incumbent Rep. Elissa Slotkin, a Democrat, announced in February 2023 she would run for the Senate seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich.
The district — which includes the counties of Branch, Eaton, Hillsdale, Jackson and Lenawee, as well as large portions of Calhoun and Washtenaw counties — was narrowly lost by Trump during the last presidential election.
Two former Michigan state senators, Republican Tom Barrett and Democrat Curtis Hertel Jr., are running to represent the district in the state’s 2024 election.
The race is labeled a “Democrat Toss Up” by the Cook Political Report.
Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., announced in February 2023 that she would run for the Senate. (Caroline Brehman/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
GOING, GOING, GONE: COULD THE REPUBLICANS’ SLIM HOUSE MAJORITY SLIP AWAY BEFORE NOVEMBER?
Though not as competitive, according to Cook Political Report ratings, Republicans are also eyeing Virginia’s 7th Congressional District, where more than a dozen Republicans and Democrats are seeking their respective parties’ nomination for the seat in the state’s June 18 primary elections.
Former U.S. Army Special Forces Green Beret and combat veteran Derrick Anderson is the leading Republican in the race and has received endorsements from House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and several other members of GOP leadership in the House.
The Virginia seat is currently held by Rep. Abigail Spanberger, a Democrat who announced in November her decision to run for governor of the state in 2025. The seat has been ranked as a “Lean Democrat” by the Cook Political Report.
Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., announced in November her decision to run for governor of Virginia in 2025. (Getty Images)
Despite the potential pick-up opportunities for the GOP in the House, several Republicans, many of whom represent districts won by President Biden in 2020, could be in jeopardy of losing their seats in the lower chamber later this year.
Similar to that of current Democrat-held seats that could flip, the Cook Political Report currently ranks 11 GOP-held seats as “Toss Up” races this cycle.
Read the full article from Here
While most people know beers as “cold ones,” Tyson Barrie opts for a different name.
“We’ve always just called beers chilly ones,” the former Colorado Avalanche defenseman said.
Now, Barrie hopes his moniker goes mainstream with his beer brand Chilly Ones, which made its U.S. debut weeks ago in Colorado. He plans to move to the Centennial State from his home country of Canada come fall to build it out.
So far, the beer is in about 200 businesses across the state, mostly liquor stores like Bonnie Brae and Argonaut, but also eateries such as Oskar Blues.
The light lager is available in cans at 3% alcohol by volume. The less-than-light ABV is popular in Australia and some parts of Europe, he said, but nothing serves that segment in the U.S.
Barrie also said the brand has a nonalcoholic version “in the tanks and ready to go” at Sleeping Giant Brewing Co., the Denver facility where Chilly Ones is made. He said it’s one of the only booze-free options that could “trick” him, and he expects the version to be available by April.
“If you look at all the data that we’re seeing, these two categories – the nonalc and the low – seem to be two of the only ones in the alcohol space that are growing,” Barrie said.
Chilly Ones has been available in Canada since late 2025, and he said a 4.5% to 5% edition is also in the works, though that one won’t hit the shelves for months.
“From what we can see in Canada, people question the 3%. They say it’s not enough,” he said through a grin. “Then in the U.S., people aren’t questioning it at all. They really liked a little bit less and the moderation factor to it.”
That’s why he thinks the low-carb, zero sugar, under 100 calorie drink is a perfect fit for Denver. With the city’s storied history in craft beer combined with a more conscious, active lifestyle, it’s the perfect stateside launching point for his brand, Barrie believes.
Drafted by the Avs and playing in the city from 2011 through 2019, his preexisting connections also were a selling point.
“Every occasion is a little bit different, whether you’re parenting or you’re at a concert or you’ve got to get up early or you’re having two after work and you want to drive,” he said, explaining why there will be multiple versions of the drink available.
“It’s pick your own adventure. We’re not going to judge you,” he continued. “If you want to celebrate and get absolutely hammered, we’ll give you that option too. It’s just you can do it a little bit healthier.”
The idea came to Barrie when he had “a dozen” or so chilly ones during a night with friends years ago. In his phone’s notes app, he wrote that he would one day start a beverage brand with his NHL buddies and call it his colloquial name for beer.
He was still playing in the league at the point, but in 2024, two years after, somebody from the beverage world “very serendipitously” reached out to see if Barrie would be interested in starting a wine or whiskey company.
“And I was like, ‘Yeah, I’d do a beer,’” he recalled.
He was still in the NHL playing with the Nashville Predators but nearing the end of his career. The now-34-year-old gathered several of his fellow skaters, including Avs star Nathan MacKinnon, and other career connections like Lumineers frontman Wesley Schultz, and Chilly Ones was born.
Having that post-playing career journey already laid out has been challenging but worth it, he said.
“I have a lot of friends who have retired, and you struggle with a bit of purpose and you wake up and you’re just kind of looking around, not sure what to do with yourself,” he said. “So I feel grateful. I didn’t even have any time to reset. I was just kind of thrown in the fire.”
Barrie and Chilly Ones raised an undisclosed amount from friends and family to start the brand and are in the midst of a more institutional round.
He and Chilly Ones have no plans to venture outside the state in the short-term. He said he, Chief Operating Officer Kimberley Kainth and CEO Matthew Clayton want to test the market for all three options and get feedback before expanding elsewhere.
Longmont-based Oskar Blues founder Dale Katechis is an adviser, along with White Claw and Mike’s Hard Lemonade alum Todd Anderson.
“We have a team that we really, really trust who has scaled and built products in Colorado and moved out,” Barrie said. “We want to get our feet under us in Colorado and then we’ll start to really look at who’s next.”
Read more from our partner, BusinessDen.
Get more business news by signing up for our Economy Now newsletter.
SEATTLE — A 36-year-old man was arrested after Seattle police say he threw rocks at passing cars in South Seattle early Tuesday, shattering a truck window and injuring a couple in their 50s.
Patrol officers responded at 12 a.m. to reports of a man hurling rocks near Rainier Avenue South and South Henderson Street.
SEE ALSO | 3 hurt after late-night crash sends car into north Seattle auto parts store
Police said they found the couple with facial injuries after their truck window shattered. Firefighters treated both victims at the scene, and the couple then drove to a nearby hospital for further treatment.
Officers found the suspect nearby and arrested him. According to the police report, the man made “multiple threats to shoot officers in the head and kick and punch officers before and after being placed into custody.”
Police also spoke with a King County Metro transit supervisor who reported that two Metro coaches had damage to their windshields and route destination signs after being struck by rocks. Police said no drivers or passengers were hurt.
More witnesses also told police they saw the suspect throwing rocks at moving vehicles.
Police said the suspect is a convicted felon and was booked into the King County Jail for investigation of assault, malicious mischief, and property destruction. Detectives in the General Investigations Unit are assigned to the case.
The Fund for Science and Technology, a new private foundation, granted Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego $15 million for ocean science Tuesday.
FFST, funded by the estate of the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, was started in 2025 with a commitment to invest at least $500 million over four years to “propel transformative science and technology for people and the planet.”
“Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego is pushing boundaries for exploration and discovery across the global ocean,” Chancellor Pradeep Khosla said. “This visionary support from the Fund for Science and Technology will enable Scripps researchers to advance our understanding of our planet, which has meaningful implications for communities around the world.”
The grant, the largest of its kind since Scripps joined UCSD in 1960, will go toward research in three areas: monitoring of environmental DNA and other biomolecules in marine ecosystems, adding to the Argo network of ocean observing robots, and enhancing the study of ocean conditions beneath Antarctica’s Thwaites Glacier, often referred to as the “Doomsday Glacier.”
Scripps Institution of Oceanography has used Argo floats for more than two decades to track climate impacts in our oceans. NBC 7 meteorologist Greg Bledsoe reports.
“The Fund for Science and Technology was created to support transformational science in the search of answers to some of the planet’s most complex questions,” said Dr. Lynda Stuart, president and CEO at the fund. “Scripps has a long tradition of leadership at the frontiers of ocean and climate science, and this work builds on that legacy — strengthening the tools and insights needed to understand our environment at a truly global and unprecedented scale.”
Scripps Director Emeritus Margaret Leinen will use a portion of the grant in her analysis of eDNA — free-floating fragments of DNA shed by organisms into the environment — in understudied parts of the ocean to collect crucial baseline data on marine organisms, according to a statement from Scripps.
“In many regions, we know very little about the microbial communities that form the base of the ocean food web or that make deep sea ecosystems so unique,” Leinen said. “Without data, we can’t predict how these communities are going to respond to climate change or what the consequences might be. That’s a vulnerability — and this funding will help us begin to address it.”
Using autonomous samplers that can collect ocean water for eDNA analysis, as well as conventional sampling, scientists will use tools to “reveal the biology of the open ocean and polar regions.”
According to Scripps, the international Argo program has more than 4,000 floats that drift with currents and periodically dive to measure temperature, salinity and pressure. Standard floats can record data up to depths of 2,000 meters (6,560 feet), while newer Deep Argo floats can dive to 6,000 meters (19,685 feet).
The grant funding announced Tuesday will allow for Scripps to deploy around 50 Deep Argo floats along with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory.
Sarah Purkey, physical oceanographer at Scripps and Argo lead, said this leap forward in deep ocean monitoring comes at a crucial time because the deep sea has warmed faster than expected over the last two decades.
Thwaites Glacier is Antarctica’s largest collapsing glacier and contains enough ice to raise global sea level by roughly two feet if it were to collapse entirely. According to Scripps, prior expeditions led by scientist Jamin Greenbaum discovered anomalously warm water beneath the glacier’s ice shelf — contributing to melting from below. Greenbaum now seeks to collect water samples and other measurements from beneath Thwaites’ ice tongue to disentangle the drivers of its rapid melting.
This season’s Antarctic fieldwork will “test hypotheses about the drivers of Thwaites’ rapid melt with implications for sea-level rise projections,” the statement from Scripps said.
“The ocean holds answers to some of the most pressing questions about our planet’s future, but only if we can observe it,” said Meenakshi Wadhwa, director of Scripps Institution of Oceanography and vice chancellor for marine sciences at UCSD. “This historic grant will help ocean scientists bring new tools and approaches to parts of the ocean we’ve barely begun to explore.”
Former Avs defenseman launches beer brand in Denver
Seattle police arrest man accused of throwing rocks at cars and buses, injuring two
Scripps Oceanography granted $15M for deep sea, glacier science
Milwaukee Common Council opposes We Energies’ data center rate plan
2 arrested in deadly drive-by shooting of 7-year-old Atlanta girl, police say
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Indiana Members Credit Union announced as new anchor tenant at Bottleworks District
Fraud-plagued Minnesota sues Trump admin for withholding $243M in Medicaid payments
Is Iran expanding attacks to target energy and civilian sites in the Gulf?
Trump claims US stockpiles mean wars can be fought ‘forever’; Kristi Noem testifies before Congress – US politics live
War in the Middle East: Iran’s broad retaliation in the Gulf • FRANCE 24 English
Trump sends official notification to Congress on strikes against Iran
-
World6 days agoExclusive: DeepSeek withholds latest AI model from US chipmakers including Nvidia, sources say
-
Massachusetts6 days agoMother and daughter injured in Taunton house explosion
-
Denver, CO6 days ago10 acres charred, 5 injured in Thornton grass fire, evacuation orders lifted
-
Louisiana1 week agoWildfire near Gum Swamp Road in Livingston Parish now under control; more than 200 acres burned
-
Oregon4 days ago2026 OSAA Oregon Wrestling State Championship Results And Brackets – FloWrestling
-
Florida3 days agoFlorida man rescued after being stuck in shoulder-deep mud for days
-
Technology1 week agoArturia’s FX Collection 6 adds two new effects and a $99 intro version
-
News1 week agoVideo: How Lunar New Year Traditions Take Root Across America