Business Insider: Republicans see an opportunity to win big in blue states like Minnesota and Colorado where they say Biden is 'dragging down Democrats'

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Republicans think they can flip state legislative chambers in Colorado and Minnesota and gain seats in liberal strongholds in November, saying on Thursday that the current political environment is putting chambers in play that were out of reach at the beginning of the cycle.

The Republican State Leadership Committee announced its targets for 2022 elections in a Thursday memo pointing to their polling that shows President Joe Biden is "dragging down Democrats in key states across the country." 

The memo from RSLC President Dee Duncan targets Biden for inflation, crime, and unions having "more say in education than parents."

"As state Democrats continue to stand by the leader of their party and the disastrous policies that are driving these crises, voters across the country are looking for state Republicans to step up and serve as a counterweight to the socialist agenda," Duncan writes. "This means more places for the RSLC to win in 2022."

The target announcement comes as Republican state legislators have emerged as leaders on key conservative issues including the rules for conducting elections following former President Donald Trump's unproven claims of voter fraud, and bans on the discussion of race and gender in classrooms.

The RSLC released a video calling state Republicans "the only line of defense against socialism in America."

Gabrielle Chew, of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, said Republicans are focused on stoking culture wars instead of passing policies that would help American families.

"The RSLC's slate of candidates includes conspiracy theorists, white nationalist conference speakers, insurrectionists, and hundreds of lawmakers laser-focused on overturning a fair and free election," Chew said. "The 2022 midterms will be a tough fight and our job from now until November will be to communicate to voters that Republican leadership means restricting the freedom to vote, attacking abortion rights, defunding education, and rigging our economy to benefit wealthy Americans at the expense of working families."

Last November, Republicans had a net gain of seven seats in the New Jersey state legislature and flipped seven Virginia House of Delegates seats to regain control of the chamber.

Their battleground state polling suggests the environment has improved in their favor since those elections, with Biden "dragging down Democrats" in key states and Republicans leading on generic ballots for state legislatures, Duncan wrote. The poll released in January showed 34% of likely voters think the country is on the right track compared to 62% who believe it is on the wrong track.

Their polling on Biden in Colorado and Minnesota suggests voters want state legislators to push back on his agenda, Duncan wrote. Republicans currently hold a one-seat advantage in the Minnesota Senate.

The RLSC is also shooting for gains in Illinois, Maine, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, and Washington, while defending Republican majorities, particularly in Arizona, Michigan, and Pennsylvania chambers, given the competitive gubernatorial and US Senate races in those states.

Republicans now hold 55 of the 88 state legislative chambers on the ballot this year, and 62 of the 99 overall across the country, according to the memo.