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
* Two new Rasmussen polls offer good news for Dems in Pennsylvania. According to the latest numbers, Gov. [tag]Ed Rendell[\/tag] (D) has sustained a double-digit lead<\/a> for the third month in a row, and now leads retired football player [tag]Lynn Swann[\/tag] (R) 50% to 40%. State Treasurer [tag]Bob Casey[\/tag] (D), meanwhile, continues to lead<\/a> incumbent Sen. [tag]Rick Santorum[\/tag] (R), this time by a 50% to 39% margin. Looking back at previous Rasmussen polls on this race, the results are nearly identical going back to late March.<\/p>\n * In Ohio’s gubernatorial race, Rep. [tag]Ted Strickland[\/tag] (D) released federal income tax forms for him and his family yesterday, covering the last five years. Ohio Secretary of State [tag]Ken Blackwell[\/tag] (R), however, declined to do the same<\/a>, becoming the first Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate in at least 35 years to keep his income tax records secret. Asked to explain Blackwell’s decision, a campaign spokesperson said there was “no particular reason” for keeping the records private, “other than it’s not required.”<\/p>\n * Don’t look now, but Nevada’s Senate race may be competitive after all. [tag]Jack Carter[\/tag] (D) released<\/a> still-private Rasmussen poll results yesterday, showing Carter trailing incumbent Sen. [tag]John Ensign[\/tag] (R) by just seven points, 46% to 39%. A Rasmussen poll taken earlier this year showed Ensign leading by 19 points.<\/p>\n * In the competitive open gubernatorial campaign in Iowa, Secretary of State [tag]Chet Culver[\/tag] (D) is still leading Rep. [tag]Jim Nussle[\/tag] (R), but not by much. A new Rasmussen poll<\/a> shows Culver up, 41% to 38%. In May, Culver led, 46% to 40%.<\/p>\n * Though Oregon Gov. [tag]Ted Kulongoski[\/tag] (D) has long been considered one of the more vulnerable incumbents this year, two new polls show him leading his GOP rival by double digits. A new Rasmussen poll<\/a> shows Kulongoski ahead of [tag]Ron Saxton[\/tag] (R), 45% to 35%. A Grove Insight poll<\/a> conducted for the Oregon AFL-CIO shows an even larger lead, 42% to 25%. Kulongoski seems to be rebounding at the ideal time: Rasmussen shows solid improvements in his personal and job approval ratings.<\/p>\n