Michigan Rep. Dave Benishek, a House Agriculture Committee member who had a fairly easy path to winning his third term in 2014, already has a challenger for 2016 – Lon Johnson, the chairman of the Michigan Democratic Party. “Johnson’s entry into the race for Michigan’s 1st Congressional District could give the Democrats their highest-profile candidate in the race since former U.S. Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Menominee, decided not to run in 2010 and Benishek, a political newcomer, won,” said the Detroit Free Press. The district, which covers the Upper Peninsula and the northern part of the Lower Peninsula, is “routinely considered perhaps the best pick-up chance in Congress for Democrats in the state,” says the Free Press.
Roll Call says another Democrat, Jerry Cannon, “who lost to Benishek by 7 points in 2014,” also was expected to run. The National Republican Congressional Committee has included Benishek in its Patriot Program, “which helps defend vulnerable members,” said Roll Call. Benishek has been criticized for effectively breaking a promise to serve only three terms.
Analyst Matt Barron says, “Democrats hoping to recapture the Senate next year face some serious challenges in winning the hearts and minds of rural voters in many key states.” In an op-ed in The Hill, Barron says Democrats have a “thin bench” in upcoming Senate races in the dozen most-rural states in the nation.