GOP face dwindling House seats

WASHINGTON, May 11 (UPI) -- Republican strategists faced with dwindling seats in the U.S. House of Representatives launched a $2 million territorial fight in the south, officials said.

Republican candidates in Mississippi and Louisiana face scandal and disgruntled voters in what is normally GOP territory. With a special election looming in Mississippi, a loss there would be the third straight nationally and the second in the south, The Washington Post said Sunday.

Vice President Dick Cheney arrives in Mississippi Monday to rally voters to the polls and The National Republican Congressional Committee already spent $1.7 million to keep its stronghold in the southern state. But some in the party say its time to reassess the party agenda.

"It's a time of sober reflection and, to some extent, resolve. I hope these special elections are a wake-up call," said Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, who leads the conservative House caucus, the Republican Study Committee.

Democratic leaders see the momentum in their favor following a 30-seat loss in 2006 to give them control of the House.

"We will have a strong, confident, predictable Democratic majority to take us forward, and then we will be in 2010, 2012, on the path to a strong Democratic leadership for a long time to come," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.