Can Democrats win the Senate? Here are some pathways

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Unforeseen a year ago, Democrats' now have a real chance at taking the majority in the U.S. Senate. (Gamblers in some betting markets now see it as likely, even.)

What are the potential paths for Democrats to take over the Senate — or for Republicans to block them and hold on?

The current Senate has 53 Republican members. The Democratic caucus is made up of 47 Senators, or 45 Democrats and two independents (Sens. Angus King of Maine and Bernie Sanders of Vermont).

Democrats need to pick up a net of four Senate seats in order to gain a majority of 51 seats. Republican Vice President JD Vance would break a 50/50 tie, so Democrats need 51 seats minimum.

President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the Republican Party faces an equally hard battle to retain control of the Senate and the House in November's vote. Watch the clip in the player above.

Our friends at the Cook Political Report have listed 13 Senate seats that are competitive, some more so than others. But all are on the board here.

Of those Republican seats, six are considered toss-ups, aka competitive enough for either party to have a good chance of winning. That gives Democrats a range of options to get the four flips they need.

However, Democrats are on defense in four seats themselves, including one "toss-up" in Michigan.

The nine Republican seats the Cook Political Report has in play right now:

A key factor when thinking about these Senate races is to assume — as both parties do — that Democrats start with one likely flip, in North Carolina.