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:
* Sen. Hillary Clinton continues to cruise towards re-election, with the latest Siena College’s Research Institute poll showing Clinton ahead of former Yonkers Mayor John Spencer, 58% to 31%. State Republican leaders continue to pursue other potential candidates to take Clinton on, but no one seems interested. Clinton’s overall approval rating stands at 60%.
* A new poll commissioned by the Republican Party of Ohio shows Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell ahead of Attorney General Jim Petro in the state’s gubernatorial primary, 40% to 30%. The same poll, however, showed both GOP candidates trailing Rep. Ted Strickland (D) in general election match-ups.
* In what may prove to be one of the key House races of 2006, Vanderburgh County Sheriff Brad Ellsworth formally kicked off his congressional campaign against Rep. John Hostettler (R-Ind.) yesterday. “I’m a sheriff. Not a politician,” Ellsworth said. “I swore an oath to protect this community. I intend to take that oath with me to Washington.” If fundraising is any indication, Hostettler has a problem — Ellsworth has already raised more money for the campaign than the incumbent.
* North Dakota Gov. John Hoeven’s (R) decision not to run for the Senate seems to have solidified Sen. Kent Conrad’s (D-N.D.) chances to win re-election. According to a new Rasmussen poll, Conran enjoys double-digit leads over his GOP rivals, including a 13-point lead over Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem (R), 53% to 40%.
* Iowa’s gubernatorial race is slated to be one of the more competitive in the nation this year, but it’d be more exciting if more Iowans knew who was running. A new Iowa Poll showed that the race is “composed of a cast of relative unknowns,” with most voters indicating that they’re not familiar with the major candidates.
* James Webb, a highly decorated Marine infantry officer in Vietnam and Secretary of the Navy in the Reagan administration, was weighing a Senate campaign against Sen. George Allen (R-Va.) this year, but has reportedly decided not to run. The most likely Dem candidate is Harris Miller, up until recently the president of the Information Technology Association of America, who officially announced his campaign earlier this month.