On this, the final day of September, some campaign news to consider as Alan Grayson continues whacking the GOP:
VA-Gov: Rasmussen Splits The Difference on the Governors Race
After SurveyUSA and PPP did their level best to completely baffle voters yesterday as to the state of the Virginia Governor's race (either a close race, or a blowout!), Rasmussen solves matters by...practically landing at the midpoint. Rasmussen gives Republican Bob McDonnell a nine-point edge (51-42) over Democrat Creigh Deeds. Yesterday's polls had the race at either 5 or 14 points.
NJ-Gov: Christie Starts To Fade As This Race Starts to Tighten
Democratic incumbent Governor Jon Corzine may not ever approach the 50% mark in his re-election bid for Governor. But, if this new poll from Quinnipiac is to be believed, he might not need to. Even though Corzine's numbers remain flat, Republican Chris Christie is seeing his numbers drop, and as a result, Christie's long-held lead is starting to dissipate. The current margin, according to the Q Poll, is just four points (43-39-12). What's more, there are far more undecided Democrats at this point than undecided Republicans.
PA-Gov: GOP's Corbett Rides High Name Rec To Early 2010 Lead
Some very early numbers on the Pennsylvania gubernatorial election also arrive today, courtesy of Quinnipiac. Republican Attorney General Tom Corbett is the only candidate at or over 50% in name recognition, and that seems to have propelled him to a sizeable early lead. Corbett leads Democratic state Auditor Jack Wagner by fifteen points (44-29) and Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato by nineteen points (47-28). The Democratic field is a mishmash of little known candidates, with Onorato leading the primary field with just 14% of the vote.
VT-Gov: Leading GOP Candidate To Show His Cards Tomorrow
The man who is arguably the best bet for the Republicans to hang onto their governorship in Vermont will announce his attentions on Thursday. Brian Dubie, who has served as GOP Governor Jim Douglas' lieutenant throughout the decade, seems likely to make a go of it. There are a raft of well-known Democrats eyeing the race, including Secretary of State Deb Markowitz, and 2002 gubernatorial nominee Doug Racine.
PA-04: Altmire Could Be Drawing A Second GOP Candidate
A day after Republican lawyer and former DHS official Keith Rothfus made his intentions to challenge Democrat Jason Altmire known, it now looks like he may have company in the GOP field. Mike Turzai, a state legislator who was being romanced by Republicans to make the bid against Altmire, is far from ruling it out. He has not definitively ruled it in, either, preferring to wait until his legislative session ends to make definitive decisions. Altmire represents a swing district, but won in that district with a reasonably comfortable 56% of the vote in 2008.
NH-02: Charlie Bass Contemplating Political Comeback
With the man who ended his Congressional career off and running for the Senate, longtime GOP Congressman Charlie Bass may well be prepping for a political second act. Charlie Bass, who represented the district between 1995-2007, is filing with the FEC. He will immediately become the betting favorite in the GOP field. On the Democratic side, the field is still very much shaking itself out, although attorney Ann McLane Kuster is in the early fundraising lead.
RACE FOR CONGRESS: Important Date In the Money Chase
The Wrap-Up closes tonight with a gentle reminder--today is the deadline for campaigns to amass their FEC fundraising reports for the third quarter of the year. Like it or not, these reports are a critical barometer of the status of campaigns that donors, campaigns, and political parties alike use to gauge the strength of a campaign. Therefore, if there is a candidate that catches your eye, and you have the means, tonight would be an excellent time to drop some coin in their direction.