Though races elsewhere on the ballot are heating up in Iowa, CQ Politics has downgraded its ratings of two congressional races here, and U.S. Reps. Leonard Boswell and Tom Latham can breathe a little easier.

Boswell might be vulnerable to a strong Republican challenger, they note, but the results from 2008 prove that he’s on solid political footing. His district is now designated ’Safe Democratic.’

And of Latham, they say that he “has strong campaign skills, looks out for his constituents as a senior member of the Appropriations Committee, and has a solid enough Republican base in the district’s many small cities and rural areas.” His district is now designated ‘Safe Republican.’