Here's today's run-down of the Congressional races:

GOP Releases Excerpt From The Kentucky Voice Recorder
The Kentucky voice-recorder saga -- involving a criminal complaint by the NRSC that the campaign of Dem Senate candidate Bruce Lunsford allegedly erased content from a voice recorder they secretly planted at his podium -- just keeps getting weirder. The NRSC has released this piece of audio recovered from the recorder after its return, of what appears to be an angry Lunsford telling his staffers not to give the recorder back:

This has got to be one of the most bizarre allegations of a dirty trick ever: That a campaign secretly planted a bug on an opposing candidate, then complained when the bug was not initially returned and may have been erased.

Murtha's Opponent Blasts Him On Racist/Redneck Comments
Check out this new ad from William Russell, the GOP candidate against Jack Murtha, hammering Murtha for referring to his western Pennsylvania constituents as rednecks and racists:

Murtha is usually a safe bet for re-election, but this gaffe may have landed him in serious trouble. A recent Susquehanna poll shows Murtha just edging out Russell 46%-41%. A fun part of this ad is its use of a computer interface to show videos of Murtha -- as if to say that the people of western Pennsylvania do in fact know how to read and use a computer.

Read more »

It looks like more than one prominent Georgia Republican likes to use the word "uppity" in regards to prominent African-Americans -- this time, it's the GOP nominee in one of the few House seats that Dems could possibly lose this year.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports that Rick Goddard, a retired Air Force major general running against conservative Dem Congressman Jim Marshall, referred in a radio appearance to "a very uppity newscaster" who had a testy TV exchange with Newt Gingrich at the Republican Convention. This appeared to be a reference to MSNBC reporter Ron Allen, who is black.

The Goddard campaign didn't deny that he was discussing Ron Allen, telling the Journal-Constitution that Goddard "simply evoked a word -- that by definition -- described the reporter's demeanor as being superior, arrogant and presumptuous."

This comes after Rep. Lynn Westmoreland (R-GA) told The Hill that he believed both Barack and Michelle Obama were "uppity," then denied that there was any racial connotation to the word.

Though the Democrats have conclusively gained control of the House with a pick up of at least 27 seats, 13 races have yet to be officially called by at least two major news sources. Here's why:

Update: CNN and NBC have both called GA-08 for Dem Rep. Jim Marshall and PA-06 for GOP Rep. Jim Gerlach.

Update 2: In PA-08, GOP Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick concedes.

* CT-02: Democrat Joe Courtney leads, but still too close to call, waiting for a recount. A Courtney victory would be another Dem pick up.

* FL-13: GOPer Vern Buchanan declared victory in this race to succeed GOP Rep. Katherine Harris, but Dem Christine Jennings won't concede until a recount, which won't be completed until Nov. 18. Voting problems are suspected to have occurred in the district.

* GA-08: Dem Rep. Jim Marshall leads GOPer Mac Collins by 2,048 votes — outside the 1% recount zone — but the race won't be certified until Friday. Called for Marshall.

* GA-12: Dem Rep. John Barrow declared victory, but it has not been confirmed by GA election officials due to server problems in one county.

* NC-08: GOP Rep. Robin Hayes declared victory, but a recount is expected as he only leads Dem Larry Kissell by 468 votes. A Kissell victory would be a surprise pick up for the Democrats.

* NM-01: No winner declared in this close race where provisional and absentee ballots are still waiting to be counted. A victory by Patricia Madrid would be another pick up for the Dems.

* OH-02: Dem Victoria Wulsin has refused to concede, but GOP Rep. Jean Schmidt leads by slim margin.

* OH-15: Fox News called it for GOP Rep. Deborah Pryce, but Dem Mary Jo Kilroy will not concede, waiting for absentee ballots to be counted.

* PA-06: The Philadelphia Inquirer has called it for GOP Rep. Jim Gerlach, but no other official source has followed suit. Called for Gerlach.

* PA-08: Dem Patrick Murphy declared victory, but GOP Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick refuses to concede. A Murphy victory would be another Dem pick up. Fitzpatrick concedes.

* TX-23: There will be a run-off election between GOP Rep. Henry Bonilla and Dem Ciro Rodriguez because Bonilla failed to win more than 50% of the vote.

* WA-08: GOP Rep. David Reichert leads Dem Darcy Burner, but more than 10,000 absentee ballots still need to be counted.

* WY-AL: Race between GOP Rep. Barbar Cubin and Dem Gary Trauner is too close to call and a recount is expected. A Trauner victory would be another Dem pick up.

One of the few Dem-held seats the GOP has heavily targeted is the one held by Dem Rep. Jim Marshall in Georgia — after all, the GOP-led state government recently redrew his district to include the home town of Marshall's GOP challenger, Mac Collins. But Election Central has now obtained an internal poll from the Marshall campaign which suggests that he's pulled significantly ahead of Collins. The poll, which was conducted by the Mellman Group, a Dem firm, finds Marshall up 50%-34% — a large enough spread to suggest that Marshall is in comfortable shape even if you factor in the inevitable bias of publicly-released internal polls. Key footnote: The poll has Marshall and Collins tied among white voters, while Marshall wins by a landslide among blacks. We'll be posting the poll's internals shortly.

The Economic Freedom Fund -- that nefarious multi-million dollar 527 being financed by reclusive swift boat funder Bob Parry -- is now dumping big money into an ad campaign against moderate Dem John Barrow, who is facing a tough re-election fight in the wake of a mid-decade redistricting. TPMmuckraker's Paul Kiel has the details.

This is big. In a victory for Dems, a state judge has just struck down Georgia's pernicious new voter ID law, which would likely have discouraged many poor and elderly people (that is, Dem-leaning voters) from casting ballots. This one decision could possibly help decide control of the House. Georgia is one of a very few electoral fronts where Dems are struggling; thanks to redrawn districts, Dem Reps John Barrow and Jim Marshall are both facing tough challenges. Some pundits have said Georgia could cost the Dems control of the House -- but now, thanks to the decision, they're both more likely to hang on to their seats. Read more about the decision here and after the jump.

Read more »

While Dems are poised for big gains in House races around the country, there's one place where Dems are struggling: Georgia. That's because a recent redistricting —- which immediately followed a GOP takeover of the Legislature in 2004 -— has left two conservative Democratic Congressman, Jim Marshall and John Barrow, fighting tough challenges from former Reps. Mac Collins and Max Burns, respectively. In Barrow's case, the redraw actually removed his longtime hometown, Dem stronghold Athens. As Larry Sabato told the Los Angeles Times: "I really don't think there is another state where there are two Democratic seats that are at least somewhat vulnerable."

Cynthia McKinney was defeated in a Georgia Democratic primary a month ago and has since been completely cut off by mainstream Dems -- but that inconvenient fact hasn't stopped Republicans from tying current Dem candidates to the long-gone McKinney as a scare tactic. A new ad by the Republican 527 group The Economic Freedom Fund likens moderate Dem Rep. Jim Marshall to Ted Kennedy, Hillary Clinton ... and McKinney. Coming next: An EFF ad in which their staffers beat a dead horse. View the ad below.

Despite Republican advances in fundraising, Rep. Jim Marshall (D-08) and Rep. John Barrow (D-12) still enjoy large cash advantages over their challengers, recently released second quarter financial disclosure forms show.

Read more »