Mediaboss Marketing

Senate Armed Services Committee Member U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan (D-NC) is pursued by reporters after being briefed by military officials about the prisoner exchange that freed Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl at the U.S. Capitol June 10, 2014 in Washington, D.C. Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images

In 2008, Senate Democrats managed to strengthen its foothold in the South in part by capitalizing on the excitement that President Obama's campaign generated. Democratic Sens. Mark Pryor of Arkansas and Mary Landrieu of Louisiana were re-elected, while Democrat Kay Hagan won her first term in North Carolina. All told, Senate Democrats had a breakthrough year, taking eight seats -- the most they'd won since 1986.

Play Video

Analysis from CBS News/New York Times Upshot's Battleground Tracker shows Republicans favored to capture the Senate, but a few states give Democr...

This year, those same Democrats are on the ballot again, and they're trying to keep up the support of the Democratic base that Mr. Obama helped them build. At the same time, politicians like Landrieu and Hagan know full well that a Southern Democrat can't rely solely on the support of liberal voters, particularly when the president has become so unpopular.

"The Democratic incumbents are trying to find the balance between declaring their independence from President Obama to appeal to voters in the middle but also capturing the energy of the Democratic base who still approves of President Obama," Nathan Gonzales, deputy editor of the Rothenberg Political Report, told CBS News. "It's a tough line to walk."

With four weeks left until Election Day, polling suggests some Southern Democrats are pulling off the balancing act better than others. In the past month, Hagan has gained a slight edge against her Republican challenger, North Carolina House Speaker Thomas Tillis. Pryor, however, appears to be slightly trailing his GOP challenger, Rep. Tom Cotton, while Landrieu is in a hard-fought race against Rep. Bill Cassidy that appears headed for a runoff.

Play Video

With just over four weeks before Election Day, several key races across the country are tightening up. CBS News Elections Director Anthony Salvan...

Meanwhile, Democratic Senate candidate Michelle Nunn is putting up a surprisingly strong challenge in Georgia Republican David Perdue in the open race to replace retiring Republican Sen. Saxby Chambliss. Nunn appears to be trailing Perdue, but she is within striking distance in the red state.

See the rest here:
Without Obama, Southern Democrats try to hang on