Examiner.com article on evaluations of Walberg vs. Byrnes

Two political analysts lowered Tim Walberg's chances of holding onto his seat next year in the wake of the shutdown.
Credit: U.S. Congress (Wikipedia/Public Domain)

It's time for a follow-up to Examiner.com article on Walberg's bad poll results.

Analysts: Walberg's hold on seat loosens after shutdown

On Thursday, two political analysts revised their ratings of next year's contest for Michigan's Seventh Congressional District.  Both of them thought that Republican incumbent Tim Walberg retaining his seat against Democratic challenger Pam Byrnes was less likely after the just-finished government shutdown.

In the morning, Stuart Rothenberg announced in Roll Call that he had moved Walberg's seat from "Safe Republican" to "Republican Favored."

That afternoon, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) passed along Cook Political Report's assessment of the race, which moved the seat from "Likely R" to "Lean R."

Both changes in ratings came after two polls showing Walberg in trouble.  Two weeks ago, a poll came out showing Walberg losing to generic Democrat by nine percent.  Later that week, the DCCC released a poll showing Walberg and Byrnes in a statistical dead heat, with Walberg ahead by one percentage point 43% to 42% with 14% undecided.

Details at the link, along with a video from Huffington Post about the shutdown is hurting Republicans more than Democrats.  Yes, the bad news for Republicans from the shutdown keeps coming and coming.

Crossposted to Michigan Liberal as Shutdown and Byrnes lower Walberg's odds of holding seat.