Republicans retreat from battleground districts as lines shift in House races

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Republicans were retreating Tuesday from a handful of battleground U.S. House races while Democrats were racing to raise money to boost candidates who seemed like long shots earlier this year.

The Congressional Leadership Fund, the leading House Republican super PAC, canceled spending in four races from the Midwest to the East Coast and increased its investment in 16 other races from Texas to Pennsylvania. Another super PAC allied with President Donald Trump is cutting back in a battleground district in the Las Vegas area.

The decisions were disclosed by three Republican campaign officials familiar with the plans who spoke on condition of anonymity to share private strategy conversations.

Meanwhile, Democrats' House campaign committee is eyeing openings in Republican-held districts and hoping to raise millions of dollars in the next week to fuel a late round of advertising that they say could net at least a half dozen more seats.

The shifting money in the final three weeks of midterm campaigns points to an increasingly defensive posture by Republicans, who have already trimmed their expectations in U.S. Senate races, and new aggression from Democrats, who are trying to capitalize on President Donald Trump's weak approval ratings.

"You can tell now where people are competing based on where they're putting the money," said Stu Sandler, a Republican strategist working on House and statewide races this year.

David McIntosh, president of the conservative Club For Growth, said there are only a few places where Republicans could pick up seats this year.

"The economic environment has not been good," he said. "Voters are dissatisfied with their Republican majority and the base is also dissatisfied with that they weren't able to get the SAVE America Act passed," referring to Trump's plan for a strict proof-of-citizenship voting bill.

"It looked like Republicans were weak," McIntosh said, "and so you've seen a lot of drop-off in enthusiasm."

The Congressional Leadership Fund is no longer spending on advertising in Iowa's 1st District, where three-term Republican Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks is defending her seat against Democrat Christina Bohannan.

Bohannan is running for her third time against Miller-Meeks. Last time, the race was decided by only 799 votes, making it the second-closest in the country. It's an eastern Iowa district where congressional cuts to Medicaid have been linked to hospital service closures and high diesel prices have been a challenge for farmers.

Likewise, the officials said the group won't keep spending in New Jersey's 7th District, where second-term Republican Rep. Tom Kean is facing off against Democrat Rebecca Bennett. Kean has been under scrutiny for his four-month absence from Congress, which he left unexplained until disclosing a mental health crisis upon his return. Kean, who won by 5.4 percentage points two years ago, has also faced questions over his support for Trump's tariffs and the Iran war.