Chuck Darwin<p>Democratic leaders are telling their party's biggest donors that keeping Montana's Senate seat blue is a real challenge. <br>However, they are planning to go on offense in Florida to retain their majority.</p><p>Why it matters: <br>Without Montana, the math for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to keep his job gets very difficult.</p><p>But Democrats are signaling they want to expand the playing field and be in a position to steal Republican seats in states like <a href="https://c.im/tags/Florida" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Florida</span></a>. <br>-- Yes, it's still red, but former President Trump isn't expected to win by double digits.</p><p>They are also eyeing <a href="https://c.im/tags/Texas" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Texas</span></a>, where a recent poll has Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) up by three points against Rep. <a href="https://c.im/tags/Colin" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Colin</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Allred" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Allred</span></a> (D-Texas).</p><p>Driving the news: </p><p>Officials acknowledged Sen. <a href="https://c.im/tags/Jon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Jon</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Tester" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Tester</span></a> (D-Mont.) is down in the polls, but party strategists still see a path for him to defy the odds and win, just like Sen. Susan Collins of Maine did on the Republican side in 2020.</p><p>"It sounds like Gary Peters is thinking about abandoning Jon Tester," NRSC spokesperson Philip Letsou told Axios. "No matter what Democrats do, the NRSC will do whatever it takes to ensure Ted Cruz and Rick Scott defeat the radical liberals Chuck Schumer and his billionaire allies have propped up against them."</p><p>The intrigue: <br>Republicans held their donor retreat just up the coast in Sea Island, Georgia, where the National Republican Senatorial Committee explained why they are eyeing a 52-seat majority.</p><p>At both events, there was a mixture of hope and fear.</p><p>In addition to Montana, there were concerns about <a href="https://c.im/tags/Ohio" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Ohio</span></a>, where Sen. <a href="https://c.im/tags/Sherrod" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Sherrod</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Brown" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Brown</span></a> (D-Ohio) faces a tough re-election in a state Trump could carry by eight or nine percentage points.</p><p>The most optimistic pitch the Democratic donors received was from <a href="https://c.im/tags/Tennessee" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Tennessee</span></a> state Rep. <a href="https://c.im/tags/Gloria" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Gloria</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Johnson" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Johnson</span></a>, their party's nominee to defeat Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) in a race the Cook Political Report is rating a "solid R."</p><p>What we're hearing: <br>Democrats are contemplating a late blitz in the Florida Senate race, where Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla) has just a two-point lead over former Rep. <a href="https://c.im/tags/Debbie" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Debbie</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Mucarsel" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Mucarsel</span></a>-<a href="https://c.im/tags/Powell" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Powell</span></a> in the latest public poll.</p><p>While air time hasn't been officially booked, Democratic sources tell us they expect the DSCC to make a splash in Florida in the coming weeks.</p><p>From Labor Day to Election Day, Democrats have spent or reserved some $5.6 million in advertising in Florida, according to AdImpact.</p><p>Over the same period, Republicans are at $4.4 million, but Scott's campaign likes to buy week to week, meaning they could pump more money into the race if they feel it's warranted.</p><p><a href="https://www.axios.com/2024/09/25/senate-democrats-florida-rick-scott-mucarsel-powell" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">axios.com/2024/09/25/senate-de</span><span class="invisible">mocrats-florida-rick-scott-mucarsel-powell</span></a></p>