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9:03 AM PT (Jeff Singer): NH-Sen: National Democrats are looking to give Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte a real challenge, and Gov. Maggie Hassan is at the top of their wish lists. When Hassan's office was recently asked about her 2016 intentions, her press secretary didn't rule anything out. That's thin, but it's a lot further than the DSCC ever got with former Gov. John Lynch, whom they tried to recruit in 2008 and 2010.
Speaking of Lynch, Roll Call reports that his name is getting some mention among Democrats. Lynch was a popular governor and he'd be a formidable candidate, but so far there doesn't seem to be any indication that he's any more interested in a Senate bid this time than he has been in the past. If Hassan declines to run, Rep. Annie Kuster is likely to get a lot of attention. If Hassan does make the jump for Senate, there's also been some talk of Kuster running to succeed her as governor. For her part Kuster isn't closing the door on anything, saying she's not thinking about 2016 yet.
9:20 AM PT (Jeff Singer): PA-Sen: It's no secret that the Pennsylvania Democratic establishment does not have a good relationship with 2010 nominee and likely 2016 candidate Joe Sestak, and is shopping around for someone to oppose him in the primary. So far they've come up empty though, with a number of potential candidates declining to take on the Honey Badger. Cameron Joseph of The Hill reports that Montgomery County Commissioner Josh Shapiro is still the go-to guy for No Sestaks Club, but he looks more likely than not to stay where he is.
Joseph drops two new potential Democratic names: Allegheny County Commissioner Rich Fitzgerald, and U.S. Attorney David Hickton. There's also some talk of a self-funding candidate coming out of the woodwork to take on Sestak. But so far this is all just talk, with neither Fitzgerald nor Hickton giving any sign that they're interested. It's early, but right now it looks like we're set for a rematch between Sestak and Republican Sen. Pat Toomey.
9:34 AM PT (Jeff Singer): AZ-02: The writing has been on the wall for a long time here, but on Wednesday Republicans secured their final pickup of the 2014 election cycle. Last month, Republican Martha McSally held a 161-vote lead over Democratic Rep. Ron Barber, a margin so small that it triggered an automatic recount. It was very unlikely that McSally would lose her lead and she didn't, with her actually gaining six votes when the final results were announced.
The Tucson-area 2nd District backed Romney 50-48, and it's exactly the type of seat Democrats need to have any shot at a House majority anytime soon. It's very likely that the DCCC will play hard here in 2016, though it's far too early to know who might step up against McSally.
9:46 AM PT (Jeff Singer): AZ-02: Barber kept things incredibly close in a horrific environment, and he definitely deserves credit for it. And in a way, he and McSally are both winners. But in another more accurate way, McSally is the winner.
9:53 AM PT (Jeff Singer): IN-Gov: Republican state Sen. Jim Merritt recently announced that he would not run in next year's election for mayor of Indianapolis, but we may not have seen the last of him. Merritt says he is interested in running for governor someday, possibly as soon as 2016 if Republican Gov. Mike Pence forgoes re-election to run for president. Pence himself has flirted with the idea, but it's very unclear whether he'll actually go for it. If this seat does become open, there will be no shortage of ambitious Hoosier Republicans who could step up.
9:54 AM PT (Jeff Singer): AZ-02: Barber himself has conceded.
10:05 AM PT (Jeff Singer): KY-Gov: Kentucky Democrats have been seriously talking about Secretary of State and 2014 Senate nominee Alison Grimes running for governor next year, and in her first-post election interview Grimes did not rule it out.
Grimes also has the option to run for re-election in 2015, and plenty of state Democrats would rather see her do that than take on primary frontrunner Attorney General Jack Conway. There's also some speculation that Grimes could run for attorney general instead but she would need to get past fellow Democrat Andy Beshear, the son of Gov. Steve Beshear. The filing deadline is Jan. 29, so Grimes doesn't have much time to decide what her 2015 plans are.
10:19 AM PT (Jeff Singer): Austin Mayor: On Tuesday, voters in the nation's 11th largest city went back to the polls in the final major election of 2014. The polls suggested an easy win for attorney Steve Adler over fellow Democrat and Councilmember Mike Martinez and that's exactly what happened, with Adler prevailing by a 67-33 margin. The race came at a time when Austin began a new city council system. In the past six councilors were elected citywide, but now the city is divided into 10 single-member seats. Martinez argued that Austin needed an experienced leader more than ever, while the better-funded Adler emphasized change.