Latham Moving Up in Iowa's 3rd District: Cook Political Report

U.S. Rep. Tom Latham’s chances of winning Iowa’s 3rd District are improving and Democrat Dave Loebsack has a tougher climb to re-election in the 2nd District than previously thought, The Cook Political Report

The 2nd and 3rd district races are among 57 races The Cook Political Report considers competitive. The 3rd District race pits popular incumbent Democrat Leonard Boswell against an equally popular Latham, the Republican currently serving the 4th District. The two districts were merged in reapportionment.

In a Sept. 20 column, David Wasserman wrote that House Speaker John Boehner’s “No. 1 priority” is returning Latham to Congress and the Democratic Party is equally committed to Boswell’s re-election.

Wasserman said private polls show that Latham has “opened up a lead in the high single digits to low double digits.”

“While Democrats' House Majority PAC has tried to prop Boswell up, there's no escaping the fact Latham was able to stockpile his campaign cash over the last decade while Boswell had to empty his during each of his competitive races,” Wasserman wrote. “The resulting ad disparity is making a difference now.”

The Cook report downgraded Loebsack, but said he’s still favored to win re-election against a challenge by Republican John Archer. Wasserman wrote:

“If there's one eastern Iowa Democrat in a more competitive race this year, it's Loebsack, whose past as a college professor carries its assets and liabilities. After getting a more competitive seat in redistricting, Loebsack also earned a reasonably strong opponent in well-connected John Deere counsel John Archer. Loebsack's decision to attack Deere on outsourcing this week was a risky move that's given Archer an opportunity to define Loebsack as out of touch, but it's still uphill for the Republican.”