The Dems need 9 seats in the Senate to achieve a filibuster-proof majority.

Two seats are already in their pocket: Warner in Virginia and Udall in New Mexico.

They are running significant leads in two other races: Udall in Colorado and Shaheen in New Hampshire.

They are trending toward slight leads in three races: Merkley in Oregon, Hagan in North Carolina, and Begich in Alaska.

The race between Coleman (R) and Franken (D) in Minnesota is likely neck and neck (with very erratic polling).

Recent polls have them closing on some normally-safe Republicans in Red states like Mississippi, Texas, Kentucky, and Georgia.

Chuck Schumer, head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee believes that Collins' (R) seat in Maine is vulnerable too, though that is unlikely.  See pollster.com for an interactive map on these races.

With this breakdown in mind, Democrats will likely pick up at least 4 seats.  I would guess that it is more likely they'll take 6-8. I'll currently predict 6, giving them OR and NC while keeping AK (Stevens is coming back) and MN (Franken is repulsive).  If Obama has a very strong night, however, expect him to take those 8 and possibly assist in an upset of one or two others (perhaps Georgia and MS) for a total of 9-10.  That was be a sweeping victory for Dems to say the least.

Remember, the magic number is 9.  Even with such a victory, mustering an entire party's vote against a filibuster would be quite difficult since some Dems represent Red states, but not out of the question.

The electoral prospects of the Republican Party are looking increasingly bleak...

*In the current RealClearPolitics electoral map, Barack Obama has fairly solid leads in enough states to give him 264 electoral votes.  If the election was tonight and each candidate won the states where they lead in the poll average, Barack Obama would defeat John McCain in a landslide--364-174.

*All of the "blue states" that McCain made competitive with the Palin pick are now out of play.  Since the financial crisis started, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and New Hampshire have all slipped out of play.  Several are now very solidly in Obama's camp.  Obama has also consolidated his gains in Iowa and New Mexico--two former Bush states.  He only needs one more to win the election.  The most likely candidates to switch are typical battlegrounds Florida and Ohio, though Obama holds decent leads in Colorado, Virginia, and Nevada as well.  He also is virtually tied in typically solid "red states" Missouri (more purple), Indiana, and North Carolina.  Remember, if Obama takes any of the 8 states just listed--which are all currently either tied or favoring Obama--he wins.  McCain would have to sweep those 8 in order to win.  In other words, you may be able to go to sleep early on election night if you're a Republican.

*In addition, Democrats are likely to expand their majority in the House by 10-15 seats.  That majority would be quite dominant.  Even more startling is the possibility of Democrats picking up around 10 seats in the Senate. Pollster has helpful maps, especially for the Senate and House.

Election results could very well be the nightmare scenario for Republicans: a very liberal Democrat in the White House and substantial majorities in both Houses--perhaps even enough to defeat filibusters.  From a conservative standpoint, the ramifications for foreign policy (e.g. rapid withdraw from Iraq, appeasement of Iran and Russia, etc.) and economic policy (universal health care, widespread tax hikes to pay for new spending) are near-disastrous.  There is even a possibility of three Supreme Court retirements and an inability of Republicans to prevent or even slow any candidate of Senator Obama's choosing.

The silver lining for Republicans: This could prove to a "rebuilding season," where such a pervasive electoral defeat will cause a purging within a rank of those who fed from the government trough rather than staying true to conservative principles.  With a more solid foundation, the future could be bright.