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One word sums up Sen. Mary Landrieus, D-La., chances in her Dec. 6 runoff against Republican Bill Cassidy: Grim.

Already facing long odds, her electoral outlook became even more daunting after fellow Senate Democrats this week blocked Landrieus last-ditch effort to pass legislation green-lighting the Keystone XL pipeline a development that could have bolstered her political standing in oil-rich Louisiana.

I just dont know how you do it, is the general consensus on Landrieus prospects from a group of Louisiana political experts, commentators and even operatives from her own party after the results from the states jungle primary earlier this month, when she finished first but with just 42 percent of the vote.

She would have to almost double her white vote to win the election, assuming the black turnout is as good as it was in the primary, said a former Louisiana Democratic political operative.

Indeed, Landrieu got the support from just 18 percent of white voters (who made up 64 percent of the Nov. 4 electorate) and 22 percent of white women (33 percent of total electorate).

You cant win an election in Louisiana with that, added the former operative. Its just math.

Piling onto the bleak outlook, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee pulled its spending on TV ads, while the GOP has been pummeling Landrieu on the airwaves. Cassidy and friends bought out 96 percent of TV spots that ran in the first week of the runoff, according to a report by Bloomberg. Bob Mann, a former longtime political operative and current professor at Louisiana State University, said Landrieu is only on the air in two media markets across the state.

Sensing some overkill, the National Republican Senatorial Committee cancelled a wave of ads scheduled to air this week and plans to buy a significant number of spots the week of the runoff, according to Politico.

Still, theres a reason not to count out Landrieu, who is now the last Democratic senator standing from the Deep South.

If you ask anyone around here theyll say shes the only Democrat who could pull this off, said Jeremy Alford, the editor of the non-partisan political newsletter LaPolitics Weekly.

Link:
Louisiana Democrat Faces Grim Outlook in Runoff