Mixed news:
http://www.suffolk.edu/...
Incumbent Democratic Mary Landrieu (36 percent) is in the fight of her political life as she leads Republican challengers Bill Cassidy (35 percent) and Rob Maness (11 percent) in the Louisiana race for U.S. Senate, according to a Suffolk University/USA TODAY poll of likely voters. Five other candidates listed on the Louisiana ballot are each polling at 1 percent or less, while 14 percent were undecided and 1 percent refused a response.
Louisiana holds a “jungle primary” for statewide offices, whereby candidates of all parties vie to win one of the two top spots, regardless of whether the finalists are from the same or opposing political parties. If a candidate wins 50 percent or more, the election is over; however, if no candidate reaches 50 percent, then a “runoff” takes place within a month. If necessary, the Louisiana runoff election would take place on Dec. 6.
“Senator Mary Landrieu benefits from seven others splitting the anti-incumbency vote,” said David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center in Boston. “But in a one-on-one scenario, she is vulnerable, not only because of her own disapproval ratings, but also because likely voters are venting frustration towards the president and his policies.”
Landrieu’s job disapproval was 54 percent, slightly better than President Obama’s 60 percent disapproval rating. Overall, 62 percent of voters said that Obamacare was generally bad for Louisiana. Among those still undecided in the November election, Landrieu has a 60 percent unfavorable rating.
The poll is part of a midterm elections partnership between Suffolk University and USA TODAY that includes polling and analysis of key U.S. Senate and other statewide races and key issues. The poll was conducted in association with the Daily Advertiser and WWL-TV, a CBS affiliate located in New Orleans.
In a potential runoff between Cassidy and Landrieu, the Republican opens up a 7-point lead, due to the high Landrieu negatives among primary voters who support Maness (89 percent).
Fifty-nine percent of voters said they did not trust the federal government to handle the Ebola crisis. Respondents said that health care and jobs are the issues that most concern them. - Suffolk University, 10/27/14
Here's a little more info:
http://www.usatoday.com/...
According to David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center in Boston, "Maness supporters are basically a holding place for Cassidy … the unfavorables are 89% for Landrieu among the Maness voters." That means that in a runoff, Cassidy can count on nearly all of those voters to jump to his side, assuming they return to the polls in December.
For Landrieu, "it's clear to me that her best shot is next Tuesday, and the way she could change the dynamics in the race is to get people out to the polls who are not engaged right now," Paleologos said. That means in particular mobilizing non-whites who told pollsters they are not likely to vote. Paleologos said the Suffolk survey shows Landrieu winning 75% of the black vote. To win the race, Landrieu probably needs "a different proportion of people to show up at the polls than historical trends tell us," he said.
For Cassidy, the challenge is to get Maness supporters to vote for him either on Nov. 4 or in the Dec. 6 runoff. - USA Today, 10/27/14
It looks like Cassidy's strategy is to keep a low profile here. Hence this:
http://www.nola.com/...
Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu and Republican challenger Rob Maness will debate at 7 p.m. tonight in New Orleans.
This will be the third debate of the election season and the second to feature just Landrieu and Maness. Leading Republican challenger Rep. Bill Cassidy will not attend the debate tonight nor did he attend the first debate in New Orleans earlier this month.
The debate is sponsored and hosted by WWL-TV. It'll be moderated by WWL-TV anchor Karen Swensen and a panel of journalists.
The debate air live in markets across Louisiana including WWL-TV in the New Orleans area, WBRZ-TV in Baton Rouge, KLFY-TV in Acadiana and KTBS-TV in Shreveport.
WWL-TV will also stream the event online at www.wwltv.com.
This will be the third time Landrieu and Maness have appeared on stage together. The pair participated in a forum in Kenner, a debate at Dillard University and a debate at Centenary College in Shreveport, which Cassidy also attended. - The Times-Picayune, 10/27/14
Landrieu's been through a runoff before and she's getting ready for it. Click here to donate and get involved with Landrieu's campaign:
http://www.marylandrieu.com/...