Former FEMA director James Lee Witt says he’s looking at running in Arkansas. GOP's troubles boost Dem recruiting

House Democrats have been all but written off in 2014, but now they finally have something to smile about: The twin fiscal crises that did a number on GOP approval ratings nationwide are providing a badly needed boost to Democratic candidate recruitment efforts.

More than a half-dozen blue-chip Democratic candidates who had been uneasy about running — or flatly declined to do so — are now jumping headlong into top-flight races. And they’re citing the ugly spectacle on Capitol Hill as a big reason.


In Nebraska, Pete Festersen, an Omaha city councilman, announced earlier this month that he will try to unseat GOP Rep. Lee Terry. Festersen previously said he wouldn’t run against Terry, an eight-term incumbent with a history of narrow reelection wins.

( Also on POLITICO: Shutdown fuels Republican primaries)

But after Terry came under fire for answering “dang straight” to a question about whether he would accept pay during the government shutdown, Festersen reconsidered. National Democrats see Festersen as just the kind of pro-business moderate who can give the party a shot in the Republican-friendly 2nd Congressional District.

The same thing happened in New Jersey, where attorney Bill Hughes Jr., the son of a popular former congressman, for months resisted pleas by national Democrats to run against longtime GOP Rep. Frank LoBiondo. But after watching the budget drama unfold, Hughes says he’s likely to run.

So does Indiana Democrat Joe Bock, a University of Notre Dame official who recently said, after much hesitation, that he will most likely run.

( WATCH: Shutdown winners & losers on “Turn the Table”)

“I’ve been looking at this, and I’ve come to the conclusion that if I didn’t do it, it’s because I’m lazy or a chicken,” he told POLITICO.

Some of the Democratic recruits have statewide or national profiles. James Lee Witt, who was director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency under former President Bill Clinton, says he’s looking at running for the seat being vacated by Republican Rep. Tom Cotton.

And in Florida, Alex Sink, the state’s former chief financial officer who narrowly lost a bid for governor in 2010, said her frustration with the budget and debt crises is pushing her to consider running for a seat in the St. Petersburg area.

“I’ve gotten very upset about the government. Why can’t these people understand they’re hurting everyday Americans?” Sink said in an interview. “I can’t be complaining unless I’m willing to be part of the solution.”

( WATCH: 10 great quotes on debt ceiling fight)

New York Rep. Steve Israel, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman, said the shutdown and debt ceiling standoff prodded candidates who had been on the fence or inclined not to run to jump in.

“There were a handful of districts where we had top-tier potential candidates a month ago, but they did not see a path to victory. So they closed the door; they locked the door; they barricaded the door; and they put me on the [Federal Communications Commission] Do-Not-Call list,” Israel said.

No one — not even Democrats themselves — is yet saying the House is in play. A combination of redistricting and demographics has limited the number of competitive seats in 2014, giving Democrats few opportunities to chip away at the GOP’s 17-seat majority. And while the fiscal debate has unquestionably hurt the GOP brand, it’s unclear how lasting the damage will be — and whether voters will even care a year from now.

( PHOTOS: Government shutdown protesters)

Republicans are quick to point out that strong recruits are hardly a guarantee of success in red districts.

“It’s going to be difficult for these second-tier Democrat candidates to run as outsiders in Republican districts when President Obama and Harry Reid are leading their party and running Washington,” said Andrea Bozek, a National Republican Congressional Committee spokeswoman.

But in an election that has given Democrats little reason for hope, the new recruits provide at least a glimmer.

Israel spent months trying to woo the 42-year-old Festersen into the race. Until several weeks ago, it seemed like his quest was dead for good. But then the government shutdown happened, and Israel tried again. He came armed with just-completed polling data showing Terry’s numbers dropping like a stone. Festersen couldn’t help but be swayed.

Hughes was another particularly attractive option for Democrats. He has close ties to the southern New Jersey-based 2nd District: His father, former Rep. Bill Hughes, preceded LoBiondo and held the seat for two decades. In 1992, LoBiondo, then a state assemblyman, waged an unsuccessful bid to unseat the elder Hughes.

The DCCC began talking to Hughes over the summer, but the would-be challenger was tortured in his deliberations. He understood that LoBiondo was entrenched, having served since 1995.

Hughes peppered the DCCC: What kind of support from the national party could he expect? What did the committee think his chances were?

In the end, the shutdown pushed Hughes over the top. On Oct. 13, he wrote an opinion piece in a local newspaper criticizing LoBiondo over the budget debate.

A similar process unfolded for Bock. His reluctance is understandable: Mitt Romney won the South Bend-area district by 14 percentage points. But Bock believes the fiscal crises has made the Republican incumbent, Rep. Jackie Walorski, vulnerable.

“If a person needed a push, this is it,” Bock said in an interview. “I’m definitely very close to the edge, and I’m starting to feel the wind at my back thanks to the government shutdown and the debt crisis.”

Spurred on by the shutdown and debt standoff, other Democratic candidates are also close to launching campaigns. New Jersey attorney Aimee Belgard, who’s been in talks with the DCCC since early July, is considering challenging GOP Rep. Jon Runyan. In Arkansas, former North Little Rock Mayor Patrick Henry Hays, who’s been in touch with the DCCC for about a month, is thinking about running against GOP Rep. Tim Griffin.

And Wayne State University Law School Dean Jocelyn Benson stood before a meeting of House Democrats and said the shutdown made her interested in challenging Michigan Rep. Kerry Bentivolio, according to a report in Roll Call.

With such a small 2014 House playing field, much of the Democrats’ success will depend on their ability to recruit candidates who can compete in conservative districts. So they’re sparing no effort in trying to get the best possible candidates: Vice President Joe Biden, according to local news outlets, made calls to Festersen and Witt in hopes of getting them to run.

The mess in Washington makes those sales pitches more compelling, candidates say.

“The crisis has crystallized it,” Hughes said. “Whereas before it was, ‘I don’t know. Let’s think about it.’ Now it’s, ‘Let’s do something.’”