Cook Moves 2 Governor Races More Toward Dems

Red-state governors' mansions are looking a little less locked down for Republicans. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report on Tuesday nudged Nebraska's governor's race from "Likely Republican" to "Lean Republican," and Kansas from "Lean Republican" to the more volatile "Toss Up" category, per the Washington Post. The shift, Cook notes, boosts Democrats' chances of controlling a majority of governorships for the first time since 2010. "Democrats are in a prime position to pick up between two and four governor's seats this cycle," CPR reports.

In Kansas, Democratic state Sen. Cindy Holscher is facing Republican Senate President Ty Masterson in the race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly, with a tightening Senate contest also energizing Democrats. Cook still calls Kansas the GOP's best gubernatorial pickup opportunity. In Nebraska, unpopular GOP Gov. Jim Pillen is contending with Democrat Lynne Walz, a former state senator, as well as two minor-party candidates, turning the four-way contest unexpectedly competitive. Other states where CPR has inched gubernatorial races toward Dems in recent weeks include Ohio, Alaska, Vermont, and Oklahoma.