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:
* [tag]Katherine Harris[/tag]’ (R) Senate campaign in Florida suffered yet another setback yesterday when GOP advertising guru Adam Goodman, a Harris advisor for more than 12 years, resigned. As the Tampa Tribune reported, “Asked whether he advised Harris to leave the race, as another top strategist suggested earlier, Goodman said only, ‘She hasn’t followed my counsel.'”
* Speaking of the Sunshine State, a new Mason-Dixon poll was released this morning on Florida’s gubernatorial race. The poll shows state Attorney General Charlie Crist leading Tom Gallagher, the state’s chief financial officer, in the GOP primary, 43% to 27%. Among Dems, Rep. Jim Davis is ahead of state Sen. Rod Smith by 28% to 9%. Most Floridians in both parties, however, remain undecided.
* In North Dakota, with the filing deadline quickly approaching, state Republicans have finally found an opponent for Sen. Kent Conrad (D). A week before the GOP state convention, Dwight Grotberg, a farmer who has never run for public office, threw his hat into the ring.
* California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s (R) re-election campaign began airing its first TV ads this week, just eight months before Election Day. Most political observers suggest the ad buy is a sign of Schwarzenegger’s need to build up some support before the race slips away completely. The ad touts the state’s economy and Schwarzenegger’s opposition to the state’s car tax.
* Businessman Jack Davis ran a tough race against Rep. Tom Reynolds (R-N.Y.) in 2004 as a political novice, and will seek a rematch this November. Davis, a millionaire owner of a heating-element manufacturer, said yesterday that he had done some polling and found he has a chance of defeating Reynolds. Neither will face a primary opponent.
* And in New Jersey, Newark Mayor Sharpe James announced yesterday that he will not seek a sixth term and sent a letter to the city clerk asking that his name be removed from the May 9 ballot. James is a controversial figure in Newark, known for his over-the-top theatrics. His departure clears the way for Dem rising star Cory Booker, whom James barely beat four years ago in a race so tough that federal election monitors were called into Newark, and which ultimately was turned into an Oscar-winning film called “Street Fight.”