Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* The latest USA Today/Suffolk University poll found Joe Biden leading Donald Trump in a one-on-one match-up, 50% to 40%. When a third-party candidate is added to the mix, the Democrat’s lead shrinks to six points, 44% to 38%.
* The same poll found the former vice president with a 16-point advantage over the Republican incumbent on being “honest and trustworthy,” and an 18-point advantage on which candidate “cares about people like me.” Biden also has a 23-point lead among women voters, which is nearly double the 12-point margin Hillary Clinton enjoyed over Trump on Election Day 2016.
* As Biden weighs his running-mate options, there’s a great deal of behind-the-scenes lobbying underway. Politico reported overnight that Georgia’s Stacey Abrams “has been privately calling Democratic power brokers, asking them to tell Biden campaign officials that she should be vice president.” The same article highlighted other efforts from Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, and Amy Klobuchar.
* For her part, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) added yesterday, “I’m not running for anything…. I just know that, you know, you don’t run for that.”
* In a bit of a surprise, the New York State Board of Elections effectively scrapped the Democratic presidential primary in the state, citing coronavirus concerns and the suspension of Bernie Sanders’ candidacy. The Vermont senator, still hoping to pick up delegates that might add to his influence at the Democratic convention, condemned the decision and urged New York to reverse course. * In West Virginia, Gov. Jim Justice, who was elected as a Democrat but is now seeking a second term as a Republican, picked up Donald Trump’s endorsement the other day. The incumbent is facing a handful of primary challengers, and the primary election is currently scheduled for June 9. * And Michael Bloomberg’s now-defunct presidential campaign announced yesterday it will pay for health care benefits for the New Yorker’s former staffers through November. Bloomberg’s operation is facing a lawsuit from former aides who claim they were promised compensation through the end of the campaign.
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."
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