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.
* With just a day to go before New Hampshire’s Republican Senate primary, a new survey from Public Policy Polling shows Kelly Ayotte still leading, but her margin over Ovide Lamontagne is down to just seven points, 37% to 30%. Bill Binnie and Jim Bender are third and fourth, with 13% and 12%, respectively.
* On a related note, some high-profile voices on the right could still help Lamontagne come out on top. Over the weekend, Sen. Jim DeMint (R) threw his support to Lamontagne.
* It took longer than expected, but after a statewide recount, state Sen. Peter Shumlin narrowly won Vermont’s Democratic gubernatorial primary. He’ll face Lt. Gov. Brian Dubie (R) in November.
* As if there weren’t already enough far-right groups running attack ads against Democrats this year, two more — Americans for Job Security and The 60 Plus Association — are dumping $5 million into hatchet-jobs targeting House Dems.
* At least for now, the Senate candidate for Alaska’s Libertarian Party, David Haase, is not willing to give up his ballot spot to Sen. Lisa Murkowski. The incumbent may yet launch a write-in campaign.
* In Nevada’s closely-watched Senate race, a new Mason-Dixon poll shows Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D) leading Sharron Angle (R) by just two, 46% to 44%.
* The same poll, by the way, shows Brian Sandoval (R) with a big lead in Nevada’s gubernatorial race, topping Rory Reid (D) by 16 points, 52% to 36%.
* In New York’s GOP gubernatorial primary, former Rep. Rick Lazio is running almost exclusively on an anti-Park51 platform, but the latest Siena poll suggests it’s not working — his once-huge lead over Carl Paladino has disappeared, and Lazio is now up by one, 43% to 42%.
* What’s with all the candidates refusing to participate in debates this year?
