The consensus is that the Democrats could pick up several seats in the House, but perhaps not the seven they need to gain control. The Republicans' biggest risk lies in the number of retirements among their ranks – 26 GOP members are not running for reelection compared to the nine Democrats who are leaving after this term.
There are 222 Republicans, 209 Democrats and 2 independents in the House. One Democratic seat and one Republican seat are vacant.
That all said, in 1998 most pundits predicted that Republicans would gain seats. Instead, Democrats picked up five seats. (See the 1998 forecast.)
Democratic Low Guess
Democratic High Guess
Republican Low Guess
Republican High Guess
