Senate Seat Showdowns

Minnesota CBS NEWS PROJECTS AMY KLOBUCHARWINNER Democrat Amy Klobuchar vs. Republican Mark Kennedy (Open seat) CBS News Race Outlook: Democrat Mark Dayton is retiring. Kennedy is calling Klobuchar a liberal; Klobuchar is calling Kennedy a conservative. This is a vulnerable seat for Democrats. Klobuchar favors rolling back the tax cut for those making over $200,000. She touts herself a tough prosecutor who stands up for working people. Dayton was elected in 1994 and despite two successful Senate bids he never achieved 50 percent of the vote. Minnesota has the longest consecutive streak of voting Democratic for president of any state; it last voted Republican for Richard Nixon in 1972 and it washis lowest margin of victory. Kennedy, a three-term congressman has a conservative voting record, but was markedly more moderate in 2004 as opposed to 2003. Kennedy is trying to latch on to Minnesota’s rising crime numbers. His campaign says these numbers prove Klobuchar is "ineffective" at her job. Klobuchar responds that in her position, she has little to do with those numbers even though she claims credit on her Web site for crime falling in Hennepin County. Democrats have focused on Kennedy’s PAC fundraisers.