New York is another big state with a closely watched legislative contest. Republicans currently hold a one seat majority in the state senate, and control of the chamber could have a significant impact on Congressional redistricting after the next census.

Much of the attention is focused on competitive districts in the western part of the state, which is not historically a heated battleground for political races. Last week, the New York Times looked at the contests in the area and discussed the changes that have put the region into play:

The shift in the political terrain has become clear only in recent months, taking both parties by surprise and spurring Republican and Democratic officials to rapidly retool their strategies, particularly in the pivotal campaigns for the State Senate, where Republicans hold a one-seat majority.

The parties have poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into a series of Senate races in western New York that could decide control of the chamber for years.

Perhaps no immediate factor has done more to put the region into play than the financial crisis, which has hit Western New York particularly hard. But the area's demographics have changed as well, with the number of Republicans decreasing while the population of Democrats and Independents is on the rise.

Democrats will need to do well here on Election Day if they hope to put win control of the upper chamber for the first time in almost 70 years.