MONDAY’S CAMPAIGN ROUND-UP….Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that wouldn’t generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers.
* Former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge (R) really is eyeing the Senate race.
* Joe Torsella, who was the only officially announced Democrat in Pennsylvania’s Senate race before last week, doesn’t appear anxious to step aside for Arlen Specter anytime soon.
* How bad are things for New York Gov. David Paterson (D) in advance of next year’s campaign? A new Marist Poll not only shows his approval rating dropping to 19%, but the same poll shows a majority of New Yorkers would prefer to see former Gov. Eliot Spitzer (D) back in office.
* Speaking of New York, the same Marist Poll shows Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D) in a tough spot in her campaign next year. While Gillibrand still has a double-digit lead over Rep. Peter King (R), who has already indicated his interest in the race, she trails former Gov. George Pataki (R) in a hypothetical match-up.
* John Kasich, a former House Republican who became a Fox News personality, is running for governor in Ohio.
* Republicans had hoped to recruit a credible opponent to run against Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D-N.H.) next year, and seem to have found their candidate: Manchester Mayor Frank Guinta.
* Will California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) support the Republicans’ gubernatorial nominee next year? Maybe, maybe not.
* John Oxendine, a Republican gubernatorial candidate in Georgia, seems to have decided on a vaguely secessionist platform. It is, by the way, the 21st century. Just thought I’d mention that.
* Former Rep. Bob Barr of Georgia, the Libertarian Party’s presidential nominee in 2008, told CNN over the weekend it’s hard to “overestimate the damage” that’s been done to the Republican Party. He said today’s GOP is “in very deep trouble.”
