Going National, Part 2

Earlier, for my friends over at the newly revamped gapolitico.com, I published a short blog about non-Georgia Senate and Governor's races that I thought would be important (or at least noteworthy) come this November. I've stated previously that I would not release a support list until all the "TBD" had been filled in, and I'm sticking to that; but some of those were filled in last night.

Here are the top 8 that I'm watching:

1. Florida Senate: Crist (I) vs. Rubio (R) vs. Meek (D)

2. California Senate: Fiorina (R) vs. Boxer (D)

3. Connecticut Senate: Blumenthal (D) vs. McMahon (R)

4. Delaware Senate: Castle (R) vs. Democrat TBD

5. Indiana Senate: Coats (R) vs. Ellsworth (D)

6. Rhode Island Governor: Chaffee (I) vs. Democrat TBD vs. Republican TBD

7. California Governor: Whitman (R) vs. Brown (D)

8. Maine Governor: LePage (R) vs. Mitchell (D) vs. Cutler (I)

After last night's primary results, I'm actually going to expand my list:

9. Florida Governor: Sink (D) vs. Scott (R)

10. Alaska Senator: Republican Too Close to Call vs. McAdams (D)

Now, the reason I've added numbers nine and ten is not really because I feel like my endorsement could go either way, which does apply to some of the others. It's because I think they will be races to watch in the context of the influence of the Tea Party and this Republican "wave" that everyone keeps talking about. I know today's first poll out of Florida has the Democrat, Alex Sink, in the lead. Her opponent Mr. Scott is the poster-child for being anti-Obamacare. He ran a healthcare clinic company (in the ground no less), and received the largest ever Medicare fraud fine in the history of this country. Can he overcome it all simply because he's a Republican? And as far as the Alaska Senate race goes, the only reason I find it interesting is this: I think if Sarah Palin is proud of what's she has (potentially) done, then she's setting herself up for heartbreak. She endorsed a FAR right, fringe candidate in Joe Miller, and it looks like he may win the primary. The problem I see is the general: Alaskans have shown that they are willing to elect one Democratic Senator, could they possibly elect two? I think this mirrors Ms. Palin's own 2012 problem: that she could win the Republican nomination handily...and subsequently be crushed in the general election. She always tends to live in a Republican-only world (in her head), and it may just catch up with Joe Miller (and Sarah herself) later on down the road. Again, if any of the races jump out at you, let me know! I'm particularly interested in the effects of Independent candidates in many of these races. Either way, KEEP PAYING ATTENTION!!!