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By Perry Bacon Jr.

MIAMI-Democrats are aggressively contesting some of the most important gubernatorial seats in the country this fall and could gain power in statehouses even if they lose influence on Capitol Hill after November as expected.

Polls show Democratic gubernatorial candidates in Florida, Maine, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and even deeply-red Kansas could upset Republican incumbents. Many of these key races are in blue states, and the rising unpopularity of President Obama does not hobble Democratic gubernatorial hopefuls as much congressional candidates, who must say if they will vote for or against his agenda.

If they win, these Democratic candidates could implement major policy changes on the state level, such as expanding Medicaid and further entrenching Obamacare, increasing the minimum wage, joining forces with the Obama administration on reducing U.S. carbon emissions and rolling back GOP-backed provisions that Democrats say make it harder to vote.

With gubernatorial victories in sight, Vice-President Biden and former President Clinton have gone to Florida, Maine and Michigan over the last two weeks to campaign for Democratic candidates. Hillary Clinton is raising money for the Democratic Governors Association this Friday in New York. Democrats are generally wary of being on the campaign trail with an increasingly unpopular Obama, but Florida Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Charlie Crist, looking to turn out minority and young voters, says he wants the president to campaign with him here.

Currently, 29 of the nations 50 governors are Republicans, so a strong showing by Democrats could put them in control of a majority of the nations statehouses, where many of the countrys laws are now written because of the stalemate in Washington between congressional Republicans and Obama.

The minimum wage, equal pay, restoring these education cuts, building the middle class and educating our kids for the future, and getting this health care thing right, these things will not happen unless you also show up at the midterms, Clinton said at a rally for Crist in downtown Miami yesterday.

Florida, the nation's fourth-largest state and the biggest one that could flip (Texas is likely to elect another Republican this fall, California to re-elect Gov. Jerry Brown, a Democrat), is Ground Zero in the gubernatorial contests.

Washington is obsessed with House and Senate races, but pays far too little attention to governors races

Crist, who was the states governor from 2007-2011 when he was a Republican, has completed a radical political reinvention to become Floridas Democratic candidate. And the white-haired 58-year-old has the passion of a convert, taking unabashedly liberal stands on a number of issues.

Link:
How Democrats Could Gain Power This Fall