American citizens in 43 states will have no say on the presidential election in November 2024. Seven “purple” states – Arizona (11), Georgia (16), Michigan (15), Nevada (6), North Carolina (16), Pennsylvania (19) and Wisconsin (10) – with a collective total of 93 electoral votes, will ultimately decide the election. All of the other states are deeply Democratic or Republican so an individual’s vote there will not change anything, despite how vocal or passionately they feel about the candidates.

It does not mean that there is nothing for the vast majority of Americans to do.

For those who are moderate and do not want to see the country continue its divisive path towards the fringes, it is incumbent to try to help separate the party of Congress from that of the presidency. That means, that as Democratic nominee Vice President Harris continues to gain momentum and looks to secure the White House, people should try to ensure that Republicans are the majority in the House and/or Senate to avoid a Democratic administration tacking to the socialist-jihadi extreme of the party.

House of Representatives

The current split in the House of Representatives is 221 Republicans and 213 Democrats. Of these, fifteen are running for a different office (12 of which are Democrats), fourteen are retiring (8 of whom are Democrats) and three are resigning (1 Democrat).

Roll Call identified ten of the most contested races in the House of Representatives; I have added one more, NY17. In every race, the pro-Israel bipartisan lobbying group AIPAC endorsed the incumbent, of which seven are Republican. Those races are (incumbent listed first, AIPAC endorsed in bold, Republicans endorsed by AIPAC in red):

• NY22: Brandon Williams (R) v. John Mannion (D)
• CA13: John Duarte (R) v. Adam Gray (D)
• NY4: Anthony D’Esposito (R) v. Laura Gillen (D)
• WA3: Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D) v. Joe Kent (R)
• NC1: Don Davis (D) v. Laurie Buckhout (R)
• OR5: Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R) v. Janelle Bynum (D)
• NE2: Don Bacon (R) v. Tony Vargas (D)
• AK: Mary Peltola (D) v. Nick Begich (R)
• CA27: Mike Garcia (R) v. George Whitesides (D)
• PA8: Matt Cartwright (D) v. Rob Bresnahan (R)
• NY17: Mike Lawler (R) v. Mondaire Jones (D)

Senate

The Senate is currently divided with 51 Democrats and 49 Republicans. According to Bloomberg, “of the 34 Senate elections currently scheduled for 2024, Democrats and allied Independents are the defending party in 23 contests, while the Republicans are defending just 11 seats. Democrats Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Jon Tester of Montana, and Sherrod Brown of Ohio are all up for re-election in states President Joe Biden lost in 2020. Trump won all 10 states where Republicans are defending Senate seats, all but two of them by double-digit percentage-point margins. Nebraska will have two races in 2024, including a special election triggered by the resignation of Ben Sasse (R).”

According to Real Clear Polling, there are seven toss up races in the Senate in 2024. They are:

• Arizona: [open] Ruben Gallego (D) v. Kari Lake (R)
• Florida: Rick Scott (R) v. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (D)
• Maryland: [open] Larry Hogan (R) v. Angela Alsobrooks (D)
• Michigan: [open] Elissa Slotkin (D) v. Mike Rogers (R)
• Montana: Jon Tester (D) v. Tim Sheehy (R)
• Ohio: Sherrod Brown (D) v. Bernie Moreno (R)
• Pennsylvania: Bob Casey (D) v. Dave McCormick (R)

In the Senate races, AIPAC again endorsed all incumbents but one – Sherrod Brown of Ohio, a definite red flag. There are three open races without an incumbent and AIPAC remained on the sidelines in each. In the open contests, Michigan is the tightest race according to recent polls, with Rogers pointing to Slotkin’s ties to shrill antisemite and anti-Zionist Rep. Rashida Tlaib.

In summary, the top ten races people should get behind to stem the anti-Israel and antisemitic tide are: Bacon (NE2); Chavez-DeRemer (OR5); D’Esposito (NY4); Duarte (CA13); Garcia (CA27); Lawler (NY17); Williams (NY22); and in the Senate, Moreno (OH), Rogers (MI) and Scott (FL).

Runner-up to the top ten is also a somewhat tight race in NJ7 where incumbent Tom Kean (R) is running against Sue Altman (D).

To be clear, I am not suggesting that these individuals have great records overall; I am saying that a balanced Congress is the best antidote for extremist policies, and donating or volunteering for these candidates may provide a path for a more moderate administration.

One can donate to the candidates via the AIPACPAC portal. The two non-AIPAC endorsed candidates should be contacted directly at Mike Rogers and Bernie Moreno. Volunteering should also be done directly at the person’s website. Early action is highly recommended, as it takes time to build the local momentum needed to win these races.

Related articles:

A Democratic-Majority Congress Would Not Investigate Antisemitism At Colleges (July 2024)

‘Tis The Season To Vote And Donate Jewish (April 2024)

Vote To Sanctify The Separation Of Powers (November 2022)

Vote Purple (October 2020)

Please Don’t Vote for a Democratic Socialist (November 2018)

Let’s Make America VOTE Again (November 2016)