3 Democrats Decide They Will Not Seek Re-Election

The 2010 election has barely gotten underway, and already three Democrats are calling it quits on seeking reelection. Two senators - Chris Dodd (Conn.) and Byron Dorgan (N. Dak.) - and one Governor - Bill Ritter (Colo.). abandoned plans to seek office again as President Barack Obama's party struggles to defend itself in a poor political environment for incumbents, and in particular for the ruling party.

As 2009 came to a close, Democrats saw a number of House members announce retirements and one congressman even switched sides and joined the Republican Party.

The Democratic Party currently have a 60-40 majority, which includes two independents that vote with them. Now the Democrats will have to defend against four open seats in the Senate. The other two senators besides Dodd and Dorgan are Ted Kaufman who replaced VP Joe Biden and Roland Burris, who replaced Obama. Kaufman and Burris aren't running for full terms.

Republicans will also be defending six open seats in the Senate in Ohio, Florida, Missouri, New Hampshire, Kentucky and Kansas.

Amongst Governors, Democrats currently have a 26-24 majority. Democrats will be seeking to maintain their majority, which is especially important in a year when those who are elected will oversee the redrawing of congressional and legislative districts for the next ten years.

In North Dakota, but the GOP and Democrats are expecting a competitive race for the seat that will be vacated by Dorgan. A close race is also expected in the swing state of Colorado. In recent years ND has gone Republican, while Colorado has gone Democratic. However, some believe that Colorado may be swinging back to the Republicans.

In Connecticut, it is believed that Dodd's retirement may actually help their chances of keeping the seat Democratic. Dodd has held his seat for five terms, and was expected to be one of the most endangered in his re-election chances this year. The Democratic party can now recruit a more popular candidate to run, which will help their chances in preventing a Republican win. Amongst the potential candidates to run on the Democratic ticket is Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal.

Dorgan's announcement that he would not seek reelection stunned Democrats who believed that he would be running for another term in the GOP-leaning state. Rep. Earl Pomeroy and Heidi Heitkamp may be recruited to run in Dorgan's place.

In Colorado, Ritter informed Democratic officials of his decision. Contenders to replace him on the ticket include Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, and former House Secretary Andrew Romanoff.