2010 Elections, Political News

The biggest newsmakers aren’t necessarily going to be the biggest winners. Pew’s Project for Excellence in Journalism has come out with a list of this election cycle’s biggest newsmakers , and while the results aren’t surprising to observers–after all, we’ve been reading the news, too–the connection between big newsmakers and potential winners is a flimsy one, reports Gabe Starosta. Of all the candidates in cycle this November, Christine O’Donnell, the Delaware Republican who won the party primary in September and has hardly been out of the news since, has received the most media attention. She’s been the feature of 160 news stories in just the last few months–but the Senate seat she’s running for seems to be way beyond her grasp. CQ Politics rates her race as “Likely Democratic,” and most polls have her trailing Democratic nominee Chris Coons by double digits. That relationship is a common one among the cycle’s top newsmakers. Behind O’Donnell, California Republican Meg Whitman , who is chasing the state’s governor office, is the next-biggest target of the news media, but she looks likely to lose her race to former Gov. Jerry Brown . And Pennsylvania Democrat Joe Sestak , Arkansas Democrat Blanche Lincoln and Florida independent Charlie Crist , all Senate nominees, and New York Republican Carl Paladino , who is running for governor, all make Pew’s list and remain underdogs in their respective races. Of the above Senate races, CQ Politics rates only Sestak’s campaign in Pennsylvania as a tossup. The Senate races in both Florida and Arkansas are classified as “Likely Republican” by CQ Politics.

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Not Necessarily Good News

It’s no secret that turnout in Philadelphia will be a key to Rep. Joe Sestak’s (D) success or failure in the Pennsylvania Senate race on Tuesday. But the battle over voter turnout in the urban Democratic stronghold took an unusual turn when Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Corbett addressed supporters Thursday night. “We want to make sure that they don’t get 50 percent,” Corbett said, motioning downward with his hand. “Keep that down.”

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Tom Corbett Turnout Comment Fires Up Dems in Pennsylvania

The Club For Growth is going all in for their former president, Pat Toomey . The conservative organization announced Thursday afternoon a $1 million ad buy in Philadelphia to highlight “the liberal voting record of Democrat Congressman Joe Sestak .” The Club has already spent more than $1.1 million on the Pennsylvania Senate race, according to independent expenditure records. The new 30-second spot, entitled “Navy,” will run in the Philadelphia media market through Election Day. “Joe Sestak served honorably in the Navy. His service in Congress is the problem,” says a female narrator at the outset, later linking Sestak to the policies of the Obama administration, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. The ad ends with this shot: “Joe Sestak, just another liberal.” See the ad here.

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Club For Growth To Spend Another $1M in Pa. Senate Race

Senate candidates Pat Toomey (R) and Rep. Joe Sestak (D) sparred for the first time on a public stage Wednesday night, offering Pennsylvania voters a pointed debate on topics such as gun control, the economy and even former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. It was clear from the outset that the men don’t particularly like each other. One regularly accused the other of dishonesty, they battled over who was more extreme, and their responses often included thinly veiled jabs. “For Joe to seriously try to pretend he has any interest in getting spending under control is simply laughable,” Toomey said at one point, soon adding another shot. “There is no end to bailouts with Joe. I think this happens sometimes with people who have no experience in business.” As Toomey fought to tie the Democratic lawmaker to the nation’s economic woes, Sestak fired back, saying: “He sounds like my parrot at home — again and again, but no solutions.” Sestak repeatedly tried to connect Toomey with Wall Street interests. “If it’s a program for the people, he’s against it. If it’s a program for the corporation, he’s for it,” Sestak said in what became a theme for the night.

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Mutual Disdain Shows in Sestak-Toomey Debate

While Rep. Joe Sestak (D) appears to have seized momentum in the Pennsylvania’s Senate contest, Keystone State Republicans are far more active than Democrats in early voting activity, according to absentee balloting figures released by the state Wednesday at Roll Call’s request. Pennsylvania voters requested nearly 127,000 absentee ballots so far. Of that total, Republican voters made up for 50 percent and Democrats made up for 42 percent, according to figures collected Tuesday afternoon. The state records show Republicans are returning their absentee ballots in greater numbers as well. The state has received about 40 percent of requested ballots, and Republican registrations outpace Democrats by 19 points — 56 percent to 37 percent, according to the state data. Absentee ballots made up for 5 percent of total turnout in 2008.

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GOP Has Absentee Ballot Advantage In Pennsylvania

While Rep. Joe Sestak (D) appears to have seized momentum in the Pennsylvania’s Senate contest, Keystone State Republicans are far more active than Democrats in early voting activity, according to absentee balloting figures released by the state Wednesday at Roll Call’s request. Pennsylvania voters requested nearly 127,000 absentee ballots so far. Of that total, Republican voters made up for 50 percent and Democrats made up for 42 percent, according to figures collected Tuesday afternoon. The state records show Republicans are returning their absentee ballots in greater numbers as well. The state has received about 40 percent of requested ballots, and Republican registrations outpace Democrats by 19 points — 56 percent to 37 percent, according to the state data. Absentee ballots made up for 5 percent of total turnout in 2008.

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GOP Has Absentee Ballot Advantage In Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Senate hopeful Rep. Joe Sestak (D) raised $3.25 million in the third quarter and reported $2.66 million in the bank as of Sept. 30, according to the final fundraising figures to be released before Election Day. The updated numbers, disclosed Friday afternoon, give the Democrat a slight cash advantage over his Republican opponent, former Rep. Pat Toomey , who had $2.3 million on hand after raising $3.8 million in the last quarter. The Pennsylvania contest has also drawn millions in outside spending, most benefiting Toomey. “The bottom line is that this is an election not an auction and Congressman Toomey is out of touch with Pennsylvania,” said Sestak spokesman Jonathon Dworkin. “We are confident that we will have the resources necessary to get our message out and that on Nov. 2 voters will understand that Joe is the only one in the race that will fight for Pennsylvania.”

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Sestak Reports Raising $3.25 in 3rd Quarter

The same day he stumped for Democrats in Connecticut, President Barack Obama formally endorsed state Rep. Bryan Lentz in Pennsylvania’s 7th district, which is among the most competitive races in the state and largely considered a bellwether for other swing districts across the country. Lentz is facing former U.S. Attorney Pat Meehan , a top Republican recruit in the suburban Philadelphia district. Meehan has outraised Lentz this cycle and reported a $300,000 cash-on-hand advantage at the end of June. “With so much still left to be done, and too many families struggling to get by, we need to keep America moving forward — which means I need you to support Bryan Lentz for Congress,” Obama said in a statement released by the campaign. “You can go door to door to ask folks to support Bryan. You can make calls to voters in your area, and make sure they get to the polls. And you can spread the word about the importance of voting for Bryan Lentz to your family, friends, and neighbors.” At this time, the endorsement was limited to the statement. The president has no specific plans to visit the district on Lentz’s behalf, although “we would absolutely welcome his continued support if the White House offered it,” according to Lentz spokesman Sean Coit. “I’m extremely honored by President Obama’s endorsement,” Lentz said in a statement. “After focusing my campaign on job creation and economic development, my first priority as a member of Congress will be to work with the President and other members of Congress to get our economy back on track.”

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Obama Backs Lentz in Pennsylvania Open Seat

The Club for Growth is dropping $1.5 million in television ad buys in five states to support it’s conservative Senate candidates and paint their respective rivals as out of touch with the financial plight of average Americans. The ads, paid for by the club’s independent expenditure arm, are set to go up in multiple media markets in Nevada, Florida, Colorado, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania Thursday and Friday. “Pat Toomey, Marco Rubio, Ron Johnson, Ken Buck, and Sharron Angle belong in the Senate, and Club for Growth Action is going to do everything it can to get them there,” said Club President Chris Chocola in a release Thursday. “This five-state, $1.5 million buy adds to the first wave in a campaign that we expect to be the most successful economic freedom has had in decades.” In Nevada, where the powerful anti-tax group played a key role in helping Angle earn a surprise primary victory in June, the club’s new ad blasts Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D) for being out of touch. “Who understands what Nevada’s going through?” the ad asks. “Sharron Angle and her husband live in this middle class Nevada house. They’ve seen their property values plummet and watched friends lose jobs. Harry Reid lives in the million-dollar Ritz Carlton in Washington. He’s taken more lobbyist money than any other Senator, and championed economic policies that hurt Nevada. Harry Reid: three decades in Washington is enough.” In Florida, the club is taking on an old foe, Gov. Charlie Crist (I), who the club helped chase out of the Republican primary earlier this year. “Career politician Charlie Crist will say anything,” the ad states. “He championed the Obama stimulus plan, then denied it. He supported the Bush tax cuts, then erased it from his website. Said he was for off shore drilling… whoops, never mind. While our flip-flop governor was playing political games, what happened to Florida? Highest unemployment in decades. Incomes down. Foreclosures up. Washington already has enough slippery politicians.”

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Club for Growth Makes $1.5 Million Play in Five States

GOP hopeful Pat Toomey holds an 8-point lead over Democratic Rep. Joe Sestak in the battle for Pennsylvania’s open Senate seat, according to polling released Wednesday morning by Rasmussen Reports. Toomey, a Republican activist and former congressman, leads 49 percent to Sestak’s 41 percent among 500 likely voters questioned Sept. 13; the margin of error was 4 points. That’s a slightly larger lead than the 48-42 race reported by Rasmussen late last month. And the poll shows Toomey with the support of nearly 50 percent of the electorate, his best showing to date. The data suggests that President Obama may be a drag on Sestak. While he won Pennsylvania with 55 of the vote, just 47 percent of respondents approved of his overall job performance in the new poll; 51 percent disapproved, a slight improvement. But Toomey also enjoys better favorables than his Democratic opponent. Fifty-seven percent of Pennsylvania voters view the GOP pick as favorable, while 33 percent view him unfavorably. Sestak, meanwhile, enjoys a favorable-unfavorable rating of 47-42 respectively.

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Poll: Toomey widens lead in PA Senate contest