Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that won’t necessarily generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers:
* In Michigan, the Mackinac Republican Leadership Conference held a straw poll yesterday, and Mitt Romney cruised to an easy win, receiving 51% of the vote. Rick Perry, who also appeared at the gathering, was second with 17%.
* Speaking of straw polls, in case you missed it, Herman Cain had a surprise win in Florida’s “Presidency 5” contest on Saturday, easily beating Perry, who hoped to win the straw poll.
* Cain admits he nearly quit the race, but now feels reinvigorated by his unexpected victory in Florida.
* The latest Super PAC endeavor comes from the right-wing FreedomWorks, which intends to raise $20 million to boost Republican candidates.
* Perry’s presidential campaign has a new video out this morning, going after Romney for changing his “No Apology” book. In the hardcover, Romney said he wanted to take his health care policy to “everyone in the country.” When it was time for the paperback, Romney quietly removed the phrase.
* In Colorado, Republican officials intend to move their presidential caucuses to Feb. 7, the day after the Iowa caucuses. The state GOP will not be penalized, though, because the caucuses will be non-binding, and Colorado’s primary will still be held in April.
* In Arizona, Don Bivens, a Phoenix lawyer and the former chairman of the state Democratic Party, kicked off his U.S. Senate campaign this morning. Party officials continue to look for signals from former U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona about his possible interest in the race.
* And in case the GOP primary in Wisconsin’s U.S. Senate race weren’t quite crowded enough, it looks like state Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald (R) intends to launch a campaign of his own, perhaps as early as next week.
