Most potential GOP Senate candidates vote against VAWA

Most of the Republican House members who might run for the Senate voted against the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) on Thursday, a decision that could hurt them with female voters should they choose to run statewide in 2014.

That list includes Reps. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Steve King (R-Iowa), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), John Fleming (R-La.), Justin Amash (R-Mich.) and all of the GOP congressmen looking at a run in Georgia: Reps. Tom Price, Phil Gingrey, Jack Kingston, Paul Broun and Tom Graves.

The bill passed the House on Thursday with the support of 87 Republicans, while 138 voted against it.

Some other potential GOP Senate candidates did vote for it, however: Reps. Charles Boustany (La.), Erik Paulsen (Minn.), Patrick McHenry (N.C.) and Shelley Moore Capito (W.Va.) supported the bill.

The high number of potential Senate candidates voting against the bill stands in contrast to the voting pattern of potentially vulnerable House Republicans, most of whom voted for the bill.

Sixteen Republicans who Democrats hope to target backed the bill: Reps. Lou Barletta (Pa.), Dan Benishek (Mich.), Jim Gerlach (Pa.), Chris Gibson (N.Y.), Michael Grimm (N.Y.), Richard Hanna (N.Y.), Scott Rigell (Va.), Chris Collins (N.Y.), Rodney Davis (Ill.), Jeff Denham (Calif.), Tom Latham (Iowa), David Joyce (Ohio), Sean Duffy (Wis.), Mike Fitzpatrick (Pa.), David Valadao (Calif.) and Jackie Walorski (Ind.).

Potentially vulnerable Republicans who voted against it include Reps. Kerry Bentivolio (Mich.), Reid Ribble (Wis.) and Frank Wolf (Va.), though all three appear fairly secure in their reelection bids early on.

This post was updated at 5:10 p.m.

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