House Dems Add 7 Seats to List of Vulnerable Incumbents

32 districts up for grabs as Dems play defense ahead of 2022 midterms

Philip Caldwell • January 27, 2022 12:55 pm

House Democrats added seven representatives to their list of vulnerable incumbents to protect ahead of the midterm elections.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which works to elect Democrats to the House of Representatives, added members to its “Frontline Program.” The program grants additional resources to incumbent Democrats in districts that are deemed competitive.

The DCCC added members to the program from across the country. One of the seven House members the organization now considers vulnerable, Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D., Va.), represents a Northern Virginia district where Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R.) seized on parents’ outrage over Democrats’ education policy to greatly outperform Donald Trump’s performance in the 2020 election.

The addition of the members brings the Democrats’ Frontline Program list to 32 districts.

Democrats are playing defense across the country ahead of the 2022 midterms as President Joe Biden’s approval has fallen steeply amid high inflation and legislative dysfunction. The president’s approval rating fell this month to 33 percent, matching Trump’s all-time low approval as president, according to a Quinnipiac poll.

Politico reported last week that Democratic leaders and operatives are particularly concerned about maintaining the support of Latinos in the midterm elections. Trump in 2020, and Youngkin in Virginia last year, eroded Democrats’ traditionally strong hold on Latino voters.