Rassmussen has a helpful list of polls for this
year's Senate races. In most of the competitive races, the numbers
don't look good for the Republicans. Alaska has to be added to the
list of competitive races, since Ted Stevens is below 50 percent
and essentially even with Democratic Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich at
46 percent to 45 percent. Norm Coleman is below 50 percent and
basically tied with Democrat Al Franken. Democrat Tom Udall has
opened up a double-digit lead in New Mexico.
In Virginia, Mark Warner is predictably slaughtering Jim
Gilmore. In New Hampshire, Jeanne Shaheen still leads incumbent Republican
John Sununu but by a smaller margin. Democrat Tim Johnson is way
ahead in South Dakota, one of the few Republican pickup
opportunities. Mitch McConnell is below 50 percent in Kentucky, one
of the Democrats' reach states, but still holds a 7-to-10 point lead over his
potential Democratic opponents.
The only bright spots for the GOP are in Maine, where Susan
Collins leads her Democratic opponent by double digits, Oregon,
where Gordon Smith is ahead, and Colorado, where Bob Schaefer is
competitive for an open Republican-held seat. But only Collins is
above 50 percent, and Schaefer is trailing (though within the
margin of error). On the one hand, Democrats will fall short of a
filibuster-proof majority even if they run
the table in all the states where they are now leading or even. On
the other, if Republicans lose conservatives in Colorado and New
Hampshire and fail to pick up Steve Pearce in New Mexico, keeping
Collins or even Smith won't do very much to help maintain
filibusters.
topics:
Alaska
