Clinton, Pelosi differ on Dem chances to win back House majority

Hillary Clinton and Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) have different takes on whether their party can take back the House in 2016.

Clinton on Tuesday said Democrats will “hopefully take back the Senate” and “narrow the margin in the House.”

{mosads}That’s a more modest prediction than Pelosi, the House Democratic leader, made earlier this year.

She told The Hill in January, before Clinton officially announced her candidacy, that having Clinton at the top of the ticket would help Democrats regain control of the House. 

“Yes, we can win the House,” she told The Hill.

“If she runs, she will win the nomination. And if she’s our nominee, she clearly — I mean, the campaign, the joint effort — would be one that could not only take her into office but would [pull Democrats to victory].”

Most observers think Democrats have little chance of winning back the House in 2016.

Democrats would have to gain 30 seats to take back the House majority — a tall order. It’s only happened a handful of times since 1980, though Republicans won huge wave elections in both 2010 and 2014.

Pelosi earlier this year said statistics show that a Democratic presidential win by at least 52 percent could translate to more than 20 House seats.

Democrats across the country are hoping that enthusiasm for Clinton could trickle down the ballot, driving greater turnout that could be the difference in tight races for the Senate and the House. 

Pelosi and other Democratic leaders typically remain publicly bullish on the party’s chances of winning back the House.

“We will hopefully take back the Senate and will hopefully narrow the margin in the House,” Clinton said during a campaign organizing event in Iowa City.

The party needs to flip five seats for outright control of the Senate, something many believe is within the party’s grasp. Republicans are defending 24 seats in the upper chamber this cycle.