Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* As Rachel noted on last night’s show, the latest news out of North Dakota was very discouraging for voting-rights advocates: “A federal judge on Thursday rejected a last-ditch attempt to block North Dakota’s requirement that voters have a residential address.”
* How close is Georgia’s gubernatorial race? The latest poll from the Atlanta Journal Constitution found Stacey Abrams (D) and Brian Kemp (R) tied at 47% each.
* In related news, Vice President Mike Pence campaigned in Georgia yesterday, where he told supporters, “I heard Oprah was in town today. And I heard Will Ferrell was going door-to-door the other day,” he told the crowd. Well I’d like to remind Stacey [Abrams] and Oprah and Will Ferrell — I’m kind of a big deal, too.”
* In Arizona’s U.S. Senate race, the Green Party’s candidate announced yesterday she’s ending her candidacy and urging voters to support Kyrsten Sinema (D). It’s worth noting, however, that the Green Party’s candidate, whose name is Angela Green, will still appear on the ballot and many Arizonans have already voted.
* The new NPR/PBS News Hour/Marist poll found Democrats leading Republicans on the generic congressional ballot, 52% to 43%, among likely voters.
* CNN released a few new polls yesterday that found Sen. Bill Nelson (D) with a two-point lead in Florida, gubernatorial hopeful Andrew Gillum (D) with a one-point lead in Florida, and Senate hopeful Marsha Blackburn (R) with a four-point lead in Tennessee. * In Oklahoma, the latest SoonerPoll found Kevin Stitt (R) with a modest advantage over Drew Edmondson (D), 46% to 42%. Early voting in Oklahoma began yesterday. * In West Virginia, the Senate Leadership Fund, a leading Republican super PAC, is retreating from its investments in the state’s U.S. Senate race, suggesting incumbent Sen. Joe Manchin (D) is favored in his re-election bid. * Following up on an item that I mentioned the other day, Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) has now clarified that he won’t attend a campaign event on Monday with congressional hopeful Archie Parnell (D), and Clyburn won’t endorse the candidate, either. Parnell, once seen as a credible contender, lost his party backing in the wake of domestic-abuse revelations from several years ago.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past." Recommended
