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A few notes on the spotlighted players in the Senate's health care vote, in the context of the 2010 elections and their electorates back home. As Majority Leader, Harry Reid (at left) is at center stage and is up in Nevada next year. The focus is also on some Democrats with doubts, notably Louisiana's Mary Landrieu and Nebraska's Ben Nelson, who aren't up but do represent very red states, and Arkansas' Blanche Lincoln, who is, and could face a tough test in 2010.

Nelson Will Vote to Begin Health Debate; What Will Landrieu, Lincoln Do?
Key Provisions of the Senate Health Care Bill
Washington Unplugged: Reid Seeks Momentum in Health Debate
CBSNews.com Special Report: Health Care

Lincoln (at left) not only represents a red state, but one that got even more Republican in 2008 from 2004 (one of the few that did). She needs to be mindful of those Republican voters: one in five of her backers in 2004 had also backed then-President Bush's reelection. To win that race, Lincoln outraised and outspent her opponent by six million dollars, but her Republican challenger still got 44 percent So Lincoln doesn't appear to have a lot of electoral margin for error with Arkansas voters.

On one hand, the state has an uninsured rate higher than the national average. But Lincoln (at left) will also need to make older voters happy, which so far has looked like a daunting task with this bill, at least nationwide.

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A Minnesota court awarded Al Franken about $95,000 in legal fees from Norm Coleman Wednesday, but we still await the big decision from the State Supreme Court on the Senate race. While we do, here are a couple of things to keep in mind.

First, if the State Supreme Court’s decision favors Norm Coleman, remember that won’t in itself give him the Senate seat. If the rejected absentee ballots that Coleman wants reconsidered are actually opened up, it isn’t known whether the votes would help Coleman’s numbers or Franken’s. Depending on what the court orders, such a ruling might only send the race back to the Secretary of State’s office to begin a process of reconsidering them.