A political analyst and former Republican leader says a victory for Mitt Romney in the presidential race could help the GOP gain control of the Senate.
Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson (R) recently surged back into the lead in several polls, including Rasmussen Reports, in his Senate race in The Badger State against open lesbian Tammy Baldwin (D). Thompson and other Republicans were favored early in the campaign but lost ground when Barack Obama surged in the presidential polls.
Now with the momentum for Romney, the pendulum is swinging back toward the GOP in several key Senate races. Tom Pauken, who served on President Ronald Reagan's team and as chairman of the Republican Party of Texas, finds that telling.
"What happens in a presidential year is a lot of people come out to vote only [every] four years -- and so if they come out to vote, they tend to pull the party lever and just vote Republican or vote Democrat," he offers.
"So it is encouraging to see the shifting momentum in this race. Clearly the Obama campaign is on the defensive."
The political analyst says the race in Wisconsin and the contest between Todd Akin (R) and Claire McCaskill (D) in Missouri are critical in the GOP's strategy to wrestle control of the Senate away from the Democratic Party and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada).