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
* NRCC Chairman [tag]Tom Reynolds[\/tag] (R-N.Y.), up to his ears in the Foley scandal, is suddenly finding himself in trouble in his home district. A Buffalo News\/Zogby poll<\/a> released over the weekend shows Reynolds trailing Democrat [tag]Jack Davis[\/tag] (D) by 15 points — 48% to 33% — in a district Reynolds has represented since 1998.<\/p>\n * Missouri’s Senate race remains the closest in the nation. The most recent Rasmussen poll<\/a> shows State Auditor [tag]Claire McCaskill[\/tag] (D) leading incumbent Sen. [tag]Jim Talent[\/tag] (R), 44% to 43%. When Rasmussen includes “leaners,” McCaskill leads 47% to 46%. When asked how they would vote if their vote determined the balance of power in the U.S. Senate, 46% said Democrat and 43% said they would vote Republican.<\/p>\n * In Colorado, former Denver D.A. [tag]Bill Ritter[\/tag] (D) is still cruising past Rep. [tag]Bob Beauprez[\/tag] (R) in the latest Denver Post poll<\/a>, 50% to 35%. Remarkably, Ritter is ahead in every part of the state, including the very conservative Colorado Springs area, as well as Beauprez’s own congressional district.<\/p>\n * Though several recent Rasmussen polls have shown incumbent Gov. [tag]Jennifer Granholm[\/tag] (D) trailing Amway heir [tag]Dick DeVos[\/tag] (R) in Michigan, the latest poll, released over the weekend, shows Granholm on the upswing<\/a>. The new survey has the incumbent ahead 49% to 42%. It is Granholm’s biggest lead in a Rasmussen poll since January.<\/p>\n * Speaking of Michigan, Republican hopes of making the state’s U.S. Senate race competitive seem to be slipping away. A new Rasmussen poll<\/a> shows incumbent Sen. [tag]Debbie Stabenow[\/tag] (D) leading Republican challenger [tag]Michael Bouchard[\/tag], 56% to 39%. The 17-point lead is twice as big as it was a month ago.<\/p>\n