LA Filing Closes; Lots of new polls; Off-beat FL news; more.
August 13th, 2006
MONDAY NEWS UPDATE.LOUISIANA: CANDIDATE FILING CLOSES.
Embattled Congressman Bill Jefferson (D) -- who faces a looming federal indictment on bribery and other corruption charges -- drew a dozen challengers by the time candidate filing in the state closed Friday evening. Of his CD-2 challengers, three are significant: State Representative Karen Carter (D), former State Representative Troy Carter (D), and State Senator Derrick Shepherd (D). The two Carters are not related. All thirteen candidates, including Jefferson, will compete in the November 7 open primary. If no candidate captures a majority of the vote, the top two finishers -- regardless of party -- will face-off in a December run-off. The CD-2 seat is safely Democratic. Congressman Charlie Melancon (D) is facing a competitive rematch against State Senator Craig Romero (R) in CD-3. Melancon narrowly defeated Romero in the 2004 open seat election. While all of the other congressional incumbents drew opponents, none face any serious challenge. Voters will also cast ballots September 30 in special elections for Secretary of State and State Insurance Commissioner. Republicans are certain to win the Insurance Commissioner race, as no Democrats filed for the job.
Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 08.12.06
BY THE NUMBERS: LATEST INDEPENDENT NUMBERS.
CONNECTICUT - US SENATE: US Senator Joe Lieberman (Independent) - 46%, businessman Ned Lamont (D) - 40%, former State Representative Alan Schlesinger (R) - 6%. (Rasmussen Reports).
FLORIDA - GOVERNOR - GOP PRIMARY: Attorney General Charlie Crist - 50%, State CFO Tom Gallagher - 26%. (St. Petersburg Times/Schroth).
FLORIDA - GOVERNOR - DEM PRIMARY: Congressman Jim Davis - 35%, State Senator Rod Smith - 21%. (St. Petersburg Times/Schroth).
FLORIDA - US SENATE- GOP PRIMARY: Congresswoman Katherine Harris - 28%, attorney Will McBride - 11%, retired Navy Admiral LeRoy Collins Jr. - 9%, developer Peter Monroe - 5%. (St. Petersburg Times/Schroth).
HAWAII - US SENATE - DEM PRIMARY: US Senator Dan Akaka - 47%, Congressman Ed Case - 45%. (Rasmussen Reports).
KENTUCKY - CONGRESS - CD-4: Congressman Geoff Davis (R) - 46%, former Congressman Ken Lucas (D) - 44%. (WCPO-TV/SurveyUSA).
MASSACHUSETTS - GOVERNOR - (Rasmussen Reports):
Former US Assistant Attorney General Deval Patrick (D) - 39%, Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey (R) - 29%, businessman Christy Mihos (Independent) - 14%.
Venture capitalist Chris Gabrieli (D) - 47%, Healey (R) - 27%, Mihos (Independent) - 10%.
Attorney General Tom Reilly (D) - 40%, Healey (R) - 28%, Mihos (Independent) - 16%.
MONTANA - US SENATE: US Senator Conrad Burns (R) - 47%, State Senate President Jon Tester (D) - 47%. (Rasmussen Reports).
NEVADA - US SENATE: US Senator John Ensign (R) - 54%, businessman Jack Carter (D) - 33%. (Las Vegas Review-Journal/Mason-Dixon).
Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 08.12.06
FLORIDA: OFF-BEAT NEWS FROM TWO STATE LEGISLATIVE RACES.
RANDALL TERRY (R): State Senate candidate Randall Terry (R) -- best known for founding the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue in the 1980s -- has taken a lesson from the comedy playbook of various successful races over the last few years. Terry has begun a series of automated calls going to the 43,000 Republican homes in the district. The recorded messages feature a voice impersonation of former President Bill Clinton "endorsing" Terry's GOP primary opponent, centrist incumbent State Senator Jim King. "I'm a Ronald Reagan conservative; Senator King is a Ted Kennedy Republican," quipped Terry. "Who better to tell the story than Bill Clinton and Ted Kennedy?" Terry and Clinton crossed paths during the 1992 Presidential campaign, when Terry arranged to have one of his followers unexpectedly hand an aborted fetus to Clinton. Terry served five months in jail for that stunt. Since then, Terry ran for office several times in New York before moving to Florida. Terry is trying to use the Terri Schiavo case -- as King did not support state efforts to interfere in the Schiavo matter -- as his wedge issue in the primary. Writer: Bill Greene.
IRV SLOSBERG (D): Wealthy State Representative Irv Slosberg is running for an open State Senate seat in the upcoming primary. To win support, he is taking to spending money on outrageous gifts to win voter support. He's taken large groups of 75 seniors to free dinners as Chinese restaurants. Since he picks up the tab, Slosberg refers to the outings as "Irvy Bird Specials." Slosberg has also announced his own hurricane relief plan if South Florida is hit again with serious storms. He purchased four refrigerated trucks and claims he placed them on "stand-by" status -- all part of what he calls the "Slosberg Emergency Management Aid (SEMA) " -- to distribute ice and water to residents. The self-aggrandizing spending goes on and on, which is why local newspapers have endorsed his primary opponent.
Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 08.12.06
FREE SPEECH ZONE.
This weekend produced little political news related to the upcoming elections -- so I'll instead amusingly note a new political party: The Pirate Party. They group is already fielding a congressional candidate this year in Iowa's CD-1. FYI, the name does not refer to any Johnny Depp or Blackbeard style pirates. "We've chosen to adopt the Pirate name so as to pay homage to the creative artists of the past, or as they would now be known, Pirates, thieves, and copyright infringers," the group explains.
Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 08.12.06
SEND A PIN = GET A FREE PLUG HERE.
Here's my open offer for every campaign (and campaign supporter): send me a button or pin from the Governor, US Senate, Congressional, Statewide Office, etc., campaign you are involved in -- feel free to add a sticker and brochure -- and I'll place a link to official campaign site here on our homepage in a daily "thank you" note. My address: Ron Gunzburger, 409 NE 17 Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301. TODAY'S THANKS GO TO: Retired college professor and economist Bill Peirce, Libertarian for Ohio Governor.
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Entry Filed under: politics