Yesterday Indiana’s Democratic Senator Evan Bayh stunned the political world and announced that he would not seek reelection this November. Bayh’s decision caught Senate Democratic leaders off guard as Politico is reporting that “Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV.) and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chairman Bob Menendez (D-NJ) were not informed of Bayh’s decision until Monday morning, according to several Democratic insiders.”
In announcing his decision Bayh cited the partisan back and forth played a major factor:
“Two weeks ago, the Senate voted down a bipartisan commission to deal with one of the greatest threats facing our nation: our exploding deficits and debt. The measure would have passed, but seven members who had endorsed the idea instead voted ‘no’ for short-term political reasons,” he said.
“Just last week, a major piece of legislation to create jobs — the public’s top priority — fell apart amid complaints from both the left and right. All of this and much more has led me to believe that there are better ways to serve my fellow citizens, my beloved state and our nation than continued service in Congress.”
The political implications of Bayh’s retirement are huge. Many thought, including this blogger, that Bayh would coast to reelection with his overwhelming popularity and large campaign war chest (around 13 million dollars).
With the fierce head wind this election season Democrats couldn’t take anymore Senate retirements, especially from fairly safe Senators that represent Red states. Senator Bayh’s announcement yesterday puts the Democratic Senate majority in jeopardy.
After the announcement, The Rothenberg Political Report changed its rating for the IN Senate to Toss Up saying that Bayh’s decision “gives Republicans another excellent takeover opportunity.”
The Cook Political Report moves its rating to Lean Republican saying that while Democrats “have not had the opportunity to assess their options, it is unlikely that they will be able to come up with a strong enough candidate to compete in a GOP-leaning state in the current political climate.”
Finally, it looks like Sen. Bayh’s decision could ultimately aid in the Democrat’s saying “Good Bayh” to their control of the upper chamber in Congress.
