[NOTE:  This was supposed to be in today's edition of AWARE, however AWARE will not be going out until Thursday, but I wanted to let you know how things seem to be shaking up.  Check back soon for action items and how we plan to get a jump on the 111th Congress.]

The Congressional Landscape

After an historic Presidential election, we look at the new Congressional landscape that will certainly have its own impact on determining the direction President-elect Obama’s administration will take.

The big picture is still up in the air with 4 Senate seats and a handful of House races still up in the air (at the time of writing this report).

What we know is Democrats gained at least 5 seats in the Senate and 12 seats in the House and the work to educate the new members of Congress about prostate cancer will begin as soon as possible.

The key races involving supporters of prostate cancer issues should prove to be mostly positive.

In Georgia, Rep. Jim Marshall won handily and will return to fight for research funding and screening for uninsured men.  As for prostate cancer supporter Senator Saxby Chambliss, he currently holds a slim lead in his race, but at this time it is still yet to be called.

Senator Elizabeth Dole has lost her seat to Kay Hagen in North Carolina.  Senator-elect Hagen is an early target to support prostate cancer.

Alaska Senator Ted Stevens, a prostate cancer survivor, currently holds a narrow lead to retain his Senate seat, but still faces the felony conviction handed down by a grand jury just before the election.

Pennsylvania Congressman John Murtha, chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, has retained his seat and will continue to be a primary target to help increase prostate cancer research funding.

In Florida, while Rep. Tim Mahoney was defeated, other prostate cancer supporters held their seats and the task at hand is to reach out and gain support from the new members of the Florida delegation.

Senator-elect Mark Udall in Colorado has a history of prostate cancer support and solidifying his support in the Senate is also a high priority.

In other key races involving prostate cancer supporters:
Nevada: Jon Porter lost.
Kansas: Nancy Boyda lost.
New Hampshire: Carol Shea-Porter won.
Connecticut: Christopher Shays lost.
South Carolina: Henry Brown won.
Kentucky: John Yarmuth won.

We are still analyzing the makeup of the new Congress and will be setting our sights on initial targeted members of Congress to begin educating them about prostate cancer.  If you have specific questions about your Representative or Senators, please contact Kevin or Marie.

Who Are We Watching?

The expectation today is that sweeping changes will be made to the Congressional landscape, and here is a primer for key Senate and Congressional races to watch for as the results start to trickle in this evening.

In Alaska, prostate cancer survivor Senator Ted Stevens faces an uphill battle after being convicted of 7 felony charges of filing false disclosure statements.  Stevens is the ranking member of the Senate Defense Appropriation Subcommittee.

Senator Wayne Allard (CO) is retiring and will likely be replaced by current Rep. Mark Udall (CO02) who has supported research funding for prostate cancer in the past.  Marilyn Musgrave (CO04) another past supporter for research funding trails in the polls to challenger Betsy Markey.

Tim Mahoney (FL16) and Lincoln Diaz-Balart (FL21) are both supporters for prostate cancer research and also both on the endangered list.  Florida has been a state where support from the delegation has been hard to win, so losing 2 there would be a hard loss to take.  Additionally, we’re losing key support on the House Appropriations Committee in Dr. Dave Weldon (FL15) – probable replacement State Senator Bill Posey is at least familiar with prostate cancer issues having chaired the committee with jurisdiction over the prostate cancer insurance mandate bill before the Florida legislature last year.

Jim Marshall (GA08) is a key leader for prostate cancer in the House as original sponsor of the Thomas J. Manton Early Detection and Treatment Act and a supporter for research funding.  He currently holds a slim lead in the polls, but is a target in a district that voted 61% for Bush and will likely garner higher numbers for McCain.  Senator Saxby Chambliss supports prostate cancer issues and holds a slim lead in the polls against challenger Jim Martin.

Elizabeth Dole, who has been an ally in the Senate on prostate cancer issues and whose husband former Senator Bob Dole is a prostate cancer survivor, trails in most polls to newcomer Kay Hagen.

Vito Fosella (NY13), Michael McNulty (NY21), James Walsh (NY25), and Thomas Reynolds (NY26) are all leaving office for various reasons which takes 4 solid prostate cancer supporters off of our list and leaves us with unknown levels of support in the coming year.

John Murtha (PA12), chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, leads holds a narrow lead in the polls after making disparaging remarks about his district on television recently.  Christopher Carney (PA10) is the Democratic-incumbent in a strong Republican district.  He supports funding for prostate cancer research.  Phil English (PA03) is past supporter for research funding trails in the polls to Democratic challenger Kathleen Ann "Kathy" Dahlkemper.

In Virginia, retiring Senator John Warner, a supporter of prostate cancer research funding, will likely be succeeded by former Governor Mark Warner (no relation).  While then-Gov. Warner signed a proclamation designating September as Prostate Cancer Awareness Month in Virginia, like other newcomers he will be an unknown initially.  Tom Davis’ (VA11) retirement leaves another hole that will likely be filled by Democrat candidate Gerry Connelly.

Other key races we’re watching today include:

Jon Porter (NV03)
Nancy Boyda (KS02)
Carol Shea-Porter (NH01)
Christopher Shays (CT04)
Henry Brown (SC01)
John Yarmuth (KY03)

Read AWARE tomorrow for a report on today’s results on these and other key races.