To hold the Senate, Democrats have to do something extraordinary

Democrats aren’t complaining about this strategy. Mr Tester has won his past three Senate races in a very Republican state by an average of just 2.7 points. And this year Democrats’ hopes of keeping the Senate hinge on Mr Tester eking out another victory. In addition to the race in Montana, Democrats are defending Senate seats in six other states: Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. To retain control of the Senate, Democrats will need to win all six of those races plus Montana and the presidency, or flip seats in other Republican states like Florida and Texas.