THURSDAY’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.
* In Nevada, Rasmussen has shown Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D) trailing former state Rep. Sharron Angle (R), but closing the gap. In its newest poll, Rasmussen has Reid climbing ahead for the first time, leading 45% to 43%.
* On a related note, Angle was asked yesterday about her approach to campaign finance reform. She insisted that the DISCLOSE Act is already law. (It’s not.)
* The DCCC released a memo yesterday, making the case that the Democratic majority in the House will persevere through the midterms. Nate Silver didn’t find it especially persuasive.
* A new poll from the Public Policy Institute of California shows Sen. Barbara Boxer (D) leading fired HP CEO Carly Fiorina (R) by five, 39% to 34%. The same poll also found state Attorney General Jerry Brown leading former eBay CEO Meg Whitman (R), 37% to 34%.
* In Missouri’s closely-watched Senate race, Rasmussen shows Rep. Roy Blunt (R) leading Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan (D), 49% to 43%. The results are largely in line with a Mason-Dixon poll released last week.
* In related news, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) endorsed Blunt in Missouri, which drew the ire of Bachmann’s Tea Party allies, who don’t consider Blunt extreme enough.
* In Florida, a new Quinnipiac poll shows challengers surging ahead in their primary contests. Rick Scott now leads state A.G. Bill McCollum in the Republican gubernatorial primary, 43% to 32%, while Jeff Greene leads Rep. Kendrick Meek in the Democratic Senate primary, 33% to 23%.
* On a related note, Meek was asked yesterday whether he’d support Greene if his opponent won the primary. Meek was non-committal.
* And in another of this year’s electoral mysteries, former state Rep. Kevin Calvey was supposed to win the GOP primary in Oklahoma’s 5th congressional district fairly easily, and enjoyed the backing of the party and right-wing activist groups. Instead, a camp director named James Lankford, who has never sought political office before, won the primary — and no one knows how this happened.
