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:<\/p>\n
* Maryland’s gubernatorial race, widely considered one of the Dems’ best pick-up opportunities, is looking more and more favorable all the time. A new Washington Post poll<\/a> shows Baltimore Mayor [tag]Martin O’Malley[\/tag] leading Gov. [tag]Bob Ehrlich[\/tag] (R) by 11 percentage points among registered voters (51% to 40%) and 16 points among those who say they are “absolutely certain” to vote in the Nov. 7 election (55% to 39%). The Ehrlich disputed the size of the gap, but conceded that their internal polls show O’Malley ahead.<\/p>\n * Speaking of Democratic pick-up opportunities, a new Brown University\/Taubman Center for Public Policy poll<\/a> shows former Rhode Island Attorney General [tag]Sheldon Whitehouse[\/tag] (D) leading incumbent Sen. [tag]Linc Chafee[\/tag] (R), 38% to 37%, with 25% undecided. It’s the first independent, statewide poll that shows Whitehouse taking the lead. The results prompted Chafee to renew his calls for Cranston Mayor [tag]Stephen Laffey[\/tag] to drop his GOP primary bid.<\/p>\n * Incumbent Rep. [tag]Chris Cannon[\/tag] (R) survived<\/a> his primary campaign in Utah’s 3rd congressional district yesterday, beating developer [tag]John Jacob[\/tag], 56% to 44%.<\/p>\n * In New York, Staten Island Rep. [tag]Vito Fossella[\/tag] (R) is on the defensive this week after reports surfaced that he used campaign expenditures to put his wife and children through ski school<\/a>. Fossella acknowledged that “mistakes have been made<\/a>.”<\/p>\n