Who gets the keys to the White House won't be the only thing decided in the Nov. 2004 election. Republican control of both houses of Congress is in jeopardy as the Democrats try to win seats in several states. If the Republicans lose of just one seat to the Democrats, the Senate will be evenly divided. Two, and the Democrats will suddenly be in charge. If the Republicans gain seats, however, they'll have a much easier time pushing through their conservative agenda.

U.S. Senate Races

Open Seats

Colorado (Campbell-R) - A mid-October poll shows Republican beer baron Pete Coors and Democratic Atty. Gen Ken Salazar running neck-and-neck, as they have all along. While Coors has the name recognition, Salazar, based on a face-off between the two candidates on "Meet the Press," appears to have more command of the issues. Also in the race is independent John "Rob" Harris

Florida (Graham-D) - Former state Education Commissioner Betty Castor faces former U.S. HUD Secy. Mel Martinez, who is coming off a bruising primary. Polls show Martinez with a slight lead, but this one promises to be close. Bush could hurt Martinez in this election as swing voters who choose Bush may split their tickets.

Georgia (Miller-D) - Miller, a Democrat in name only, is retiring, and this seat is likely to be taken by Rep. Johnny Isakson (R). Recent polls show that Rep. Denise Majette (D) appears to have made a minor dent in Isakson's wide lead and could give him a run for his money, but the clock is ticking until Election Day.

Illinois (Fitzgerald-R) - Barack Obama (D) scored a rather decisive win in the Democratic primary, and the winner of the Republican primary, political novice Jack Ryan, dropped out of the race after his divorce records were released to the public. After a six week search for a candidate, the GOP nominated former UN ambassador Alan Keyes, an untra-conservative Maryland resident, to replace Ryan on the ballot. A recent Chicago Tribune poll shows Obama (65%) far ahead of Keyes (24%). Jerry Kohn (L) is also a viable option for conservatives who object to Keyes' outrageous rhetoric. Independent Al Franzen is also running. For more information, visit 2004 Illinois Senator race

Louisiana (Breaux-D) - With Breaux stepping aside, Bush is losing a key swing vote in the U.S. Senate. Republican David Vitter leads in the polls over Rep. Chris John (D), Treasurer John Kennedy (D) and state Rep. Arthur Morrell (D). In Louisiana, a candidate must gain at least 50% of the vote on election day to be considered a winner; otherwise it goes to a run-off between the top two vote-getters. That said, it's quite likely that Vitter could gain more than 50% on Nov. 2 and win outright.

North Carolina (Edwards-D) - This race has suddenly gotten very close. Former White House chief of staff Erskine Bowles (D) had lead Rep. Richard Burr (R) and Libertarian contractor Tom Bailey. But Burr has managed to shrink that lead to just a few points rather rapidly, and in some polls, Burr is ahead. This is a nail-biter.

Oklahoma (Nickles-R) - Rep. Brad Carson (D) has run a solid campaign, keeping Rep. Tom Coburn (R) on the defensive. Coburn, an OB/GYN, has had to answer questions about a case in which he alledgedly sterilized a patient without her consent. Coburn has also made some Alan Keyes-style comments, such as the assertion that there is "rampant lesbianism" in southern Oklahoma schools. Consequently, the polls show Coburn and Carson tied in this Republican state. Independent Sheila Bilyeu is also running.

South Carolina (Hollings-D) - Rep. Jim DeMint (R) faces Democrat Superintendent of Education Inez Tenenbaum in the November election. Though DeMint has lead in the polls, Tenenbaum has hit DeMint pretty hard on his support for a national sales tax. In recent days, Tenenbaum has closed the gap in the polls. This race will be a lot closer than most pundits believe. In fact, this race could be one of the inevitable surprises on election day.

Sizzlin' hot races

Alaska (Murkowski-R) - Polls continue to show former Democratic Gov. Tony Knowles leading GOP incumbent Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Green Party candidate Jim Sykes. Murkowski has been on the hot seat since being appointed to this seat by her father, Gov. Frank Murkowski, in a move that was widely criticized by Republicans and Democrats alike as pure nepotism. Her moderate positions on abortion and other issues haven't exactly helped her close ranks among Republicans. For the moment, Knowles appears to be the favorite in this race.

Kentucky (Bunning-R) - Bunning brought this race into national headlines when he joked that his opponent state Sen. Dan Mongiardo (D) looks like one of Saddam's sons. That's just one example of a classic Bunning smokescreen to defame his opponent rather than address the issues. Mongiardo for his part has been rather quiet but has proven he can bite back. The Democrat's campaign is believed to be the source of a rumor that the aging Bunning's mind is not all there, something Bunning sought to disprove by releasing some of his medical records. The records, critics say, don't explicitly disprove the rumor. That said, Mongiardo has not moved up much in the polls, but the potential is there. Still, Bunning was tough on the mound as a Major League pitcher and is tough in a campaign. He will fight tooth and nail.

South Dakota (Daschle-D) - Tom Daschle's re-election outlook brightened significantly when Tim Giago, a Native American activist running as an independent, dropped out of the race and endorsed the Senate Minority Leader. Remaining challengers include former Rep. John Thune (R), who narrowly lost to Sen. Tim Johnson for SD's other senate seat, and Libertarian William Stone III. Daschle continues to narrowly lead Thune in the polls.

Safe (for now)

Arkansas (Lincoln-D) - Sen. Blanche Lincoln was one of Bush's targets as he traveled the country promoting his tax cut. Lincoln bit back, lobbying to add benefits for the poor who were cut out of the tax cut bill at the last minute by Republicans. Lincoln's opponents will be state Sen. Jim Holt (R) and write-in liberal activist Gene Mason.
California (Boxer-D) - Polls show that Sen. Barbara Boxer is safe, but anything can happen in California. Other contenders include judge Jim Gray (L), former Secretary of State Bill Jones (R), chiropractor Don Grundmann (AIP) and Marsha Feinland (PFP).
Pennsylvania (Specter-R) - In the state's primary, moderate Arlen Specter defeated a strong challenger in ultra-conservative Rep. Pat Toomey -- with the help of an endorsement from President Bush. In the November election, Specter, a favorite among moderates, is a strong favorite over Rep. Joe Hoeffel (D). Constitution Party candidate Jim Clymer is also running, potentially pulling conservative voters away from Specter. So far, Hoeffel hasn't been able to steal back moderates and conservative Democrats that make up Specter's base.
Washington (Murray-D) - This is probably one of the missed opportunities for the Republicans, but the promise of Rep. George Nethercutt (R) never materialized.

Safe

Alabama (Shelby-R) - Sen. Richard Shelby faces Democrat Wayne Sowell
Arizona (McCain-R) - Sen. John McCain faces light challenges from Democrat Stu Starky and Libertarian Ernest Hancock in the November elections.
Connecticut (Dodd-D)
Iowa (Grassley-R) - The influential Sen. Grassley is a safe bet on Nov. 2. He is opposed by former state Sen. Art Small (D), Daryl Northrop (G), Christy Welty (L) and Edwin Fruit (Socialist Workers).
Hawaii (Inouye-D)
Idaho (Crapo-R)
Indiana (Bayh-D)
Kansas (Brownback-R) - Though a GOP stronghold, Kansas shocked the nation and elected a Democrat governor in '02. Still, Brownback is in.
Maryland (Mikulski-D) - Mikulski is so safe, Alan Keyes dashed off to a different state for his latest vanity campaign.
Missouri (Bond-R) - State Treasurer Nancy Farmer (D) appeared to be a promising candidate, but a strong campaign never materialized. Bond is a safe bet.
New York (Schumer-D)
North Dakota (Dorgan-D)
Nevada (Reid-D)
New Hampshire (Gregg-R)
Ohio (Voinovich-R) - While Ohio is battleground state in the presidential race, polls show Voinovich well ahead of challenger Eric Fingerhut (D). For Democrats, this is a missed opportunity because Voinovich probably could have been taken down. Fingerhut and Voinovich will debate on Oct. 22.
Oregon (Wyden-D)
Utah (Bennett-R)
Vermont (Leahy-D) - Even though Vice President Dick "Big Time" Cheney reportedly requested, on the floor of the senate, that Sen. Patrick Leahy "f*uck off," Vermont voters probably won't make a similar statement at the polls.
Wisconsin (Feingold-D) - Feingold doesn't have much to worry about.

Updated October 20, 2004