PHOENIX -- On Election Day, Arizonans in the 1st and 3rd Districts will cast their votes in two hotly contested congressional races. In the 1st District, two women are fighting for the current representative's vacant seat; analysts are calling the 3rd District race a "bellwether" contest that could signal the outcome of congressional races across the country.

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• 1st District -- Who Will Replace Renzi?
• 2nd District -- District To Remain Republican, Analysts Say
• 3rd District -- A Bellwether Contest
• 4th District -- Same Challenger Runs Against Incumbent For 3rd Time
• 5th District -- 68-Year-Old Freshman Senator Vs. 'Numbers Geek'
• 6th District -- Flake Sees 1st Challenger In 4 Years

Arizona Democrats hoped the elections would give them a majority in the state's eight-member U.S. House delegation for the first time since 1966.

At that time, Arizona had three congressmen, two of them Democrats.

The House delegation has been split 4-4 between Republicans and Democrats since 2006, when Democrat Harry Mitchell defeated incumbent Republican J.D. Hayworth in the 5th Congressional District, and Democrat Gabrielle Giffords succeeded retiring Republican Congressman Jim Kolbe in southern Arizona's 8th District.

The four current Democratic incumbents were viewed as either likely winners Tuesday or at least as candidates capable of holding on to their seats.

Democrats were also hoping to pick up the largely rural 1st Congressional District, where Ann Kirkpatrick had waged a strong campaign against Republican Sydney Hay.

Political observers also anticipated a possibly close race between Republican Congressman John Shadegg and Democrat Bob Lord in the 3rd District.

1st District -- Who Will Replace Renzi?

Two women are battling to replace indicted Rep. Rick Renzi as Arizona's 1st District congressional representative.

Democratic candidate Ann Kirkpatrick and Republican candidate Sydney Hay are fighting for the state's only open congressional seat, which represents a massive swath of rural Arizona that extends from the Four Corners to Casa Grande.

Kirkpatrick, an Eastern Arizona native who speaks Apache, will try to become the district's first Democratic representative since its creation in 2002.

The middle-class district is worse off than it was before Renzi's election, she said.

"I tell you, families are really struggling to put food on the table," Kirkpatrick said.

She also said if elected, she would try to work with Republicans.

"My leadership style is such that I'm able to reach across the aisle in a bipartisan way to get things done," Kirkpatrick said.

Hay disagrees, saying Kirkpatrick is too liberal for the small towns in the district.

"Ann Kirkpatrick does not represent this district at all in terms of philosophy," she said.

Hay, a small business owner, said she would work to keep taxes low.

"I'm one of the foremost tax fighters in Arizona history," she said. "I got the two-thirds majority change on the constitutional amendment to make it tougher to raise taxes."

For her part, Kirkpatrick said she would cut taxes, too -- just not for the upper class.

In late August, political analysts said the Democratic candidate will have a slight edge over the Republican because of the suspicion surrounding Renzi, a national surge of enthusiasm and financial support for Democrats, and because no Republican candidate in the race attracted a lot of money, had big name recognition or has held elected office.

Renzi, 50, is accused of engineering a swap of federally owned mining land to benefit himself and a former business partner. Authorities also contend that he stole from clients of his family-owned insurance company to help finance his first congressional campaign.

Renzi has pleaded not guilty and said he will not resign because he is innocent. He is scheduled to go on trial in federal court in Tucson next spring.

2nd District -- District To Remain Republican, Analysts Say

Arizona's 2nd Congressional District incumbent Rep. Trent Franks should not have much to worry about on Election Day -- the district, which includes the northwest Valley and the entire northwest corner of the state, is solidly Republican.

Nevertheless, Democratic candidate John Thrasher, a music teacher for Deer Valley Schools, is challenging him.

Thrasher is pro-abortion rights, supports gay marriage and believes earmarks are OK.

Franks, a social and fiscal conservative who was elected to Congress in 2002, serves on both the judiciary and armed services committee.

3rd District -- A Bellwether Contest

The race between Republican incumbent Rep. John Shadegg and Democratic challenger Bob Lord to represent the 3rd District has become one of the hottest congressional races in the country.

Since incumbent Shadegg first won the district, which is made up of northern and central parts of Phoenix, 14 years ago, he has not had a serious re-election challenge until this year.

"I think they want to knock off a high-profile, outspoken Republican," Shadegg said.

Both Republicans and Democrats call this race a "bellwether" contest -- if a well-known congressman like Shadegg loses this district, the national Republican Party may be in a trouble.

The Democratic Party has pumped millions of dollars into ads linking Shadegg to President George W. Bush.

Democratic challenger Bob Lord defended the attack ads, saying they are about "accountability."

"All we're doing is putting John Shadegg's record out there for voters to look at," Lord said, pointing to his opponent's history of supporting less financial market regulation. "He and George Bush (have) driven the economy into the ditch.

"It's very apparent that it's their policies that have gotten us where we are."

Nevertheless, Shadegg said he went against the president on issues like government spending and the war in Iraq; he also said Arizonans don't know how Lord would vote.

"Nobody has seen a commercial where Bob Lord says what he'll do for Arizona," Shadegg said. "I don't think the people of Arizona are going to elect him."

4th District -- Challenger Runs Against Incumbent For 3rd Time

For the third time in a row, Republican Don Karg is running against the longest-serving congressman in the state, incumbent Rep. Ed Pastor, for the 4th District seat.

Pastor, a Democrat who has represented the district for 17 years and the first Hispanic congressman in Arizona history, won his re-election against Karg by 48 points in 2006.

Karg is a longtime advocate of the aerospace manufacturing industry, and he said he would fight for ethics reform.

The 4th District starts in downtown and covers southern and western of Phoenix, as well as parts of Glendale.

5th District -- 68-Year-Old Freshman Senator Vs. 'Numbers Geek'

Rep. Harry Mitchell is a first-term Democratic congressman in a district that generally votes Republican, which means nothing is certain when he faces former Maricopa County Treasurer David Schweikert on Election Day.

Arizona's 5th District, which includes Scottsdale, Tempe and small parts of Mesa and Phoenix, has almost 40,000 more registered Republicans than Democrats; however, there are many independents.

Mitchell, 68, said his age is the secret to his success.

"I'm not looking for this to be a career; I've already had a career," Mitchell said. "I'm looking for this to be a real public service.

"As a result, I will continue to be a centrist and vote not (for) what party leaders think is best, but what I think is best for this district in this state."

In his first two years in Congress, Mitchell made headlines as a veterans' advocate when he sponsored the latest GI Bill; however, Schweikert, a Republican, said Mitchell has not lived up to his own promises.

"He promised to make a difference in immigration -- he didn't," Schweikert said. "He promised to bring ethical reform -- it's gotten worse."

Schweikert, for his part, is a self-admitted "numbers geek" and a seasoned traveler, which he said contributes to his knowledge of world affairs.

"I've been up and down through Burma, Serbia, India, Sri Lanka," Schweikert said. "I try to bring that understanding of the world to our discussions about foreign policy."

6th District -- Flake Sees 1st Challenger In 4 Years

Election Day 2008 will be the first time in four years that Arizona's 6th District Rep. Jeff Flake has a Democratic challenger.

Flake's opponent, Rebecca Schneider, is a library supervisor for Arizona State University who said she would focus on supporting lower- and middle-class families.

She also said she would make cleaning up the environment a priority.

Flake, a Republican, has represented the district since 2000, and he is best known for his staunch opposition to earmark spending and for his support of immigration reform that includes a guest worker program.

Flake is also a social conservative who is anti-abortion and against gay marriage.

The 6th District makes up most of the Southeast Valley.