Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* For those keeping track, Election Day is four weeks from today.
* On a related note, early voting is now underway in 10 states, with Montana and Nebraska joining the list today. The group will expand to 13 states tomorrow, with the addition of Arizona, Indiana, and Ohio.
* Also, today is the last day to register to vote in Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Texas.
* Donald Trump predicted yesterday that “a lot of Democrats are going to vote Republican” in this year’s midterm elections. He did not appear to be kidding.
* As of last night, the crowd-funding efforts to run against Sen. Susan Collins (R) in Maine in 2020 had taken in $4 million. As Taegan Goddard added, “To put this in perspective, Collins raised $6 million for her entire campaign in 2014.”
* On a related note, a fairly long list of possible Democratic candidates is lining up in Maine, weighing a challenge to Collins, including Rep. Chellie Pingree, former state House Speaker Hannah Pingree, and current state House Speaker Sara Gideon. * A new Washington Post-Schar School poll in Virginia’s 10th congressional district, one of the nation’s most closely watched U.S. House races, found Jennifer Wexton (D) leading incumbent Rep. Barbara Comstock (R), 55% to 43%. * Speaking of closely watched U.S. House races, the latest poll from DeSales University/WFMZ-TV in Pennsylvania’s 7th congressional district, found Susan Wild (D) leading Marty Nothstein (R) by nearly 20 points. The district was represented by Rep. Pat Meehan (R), who resigned earlier this year. * And former Rep. David Jolly (Fla.) announced the other day that he’s given up his membership in the Republican Party, and recently changed his Florida registration to “no party affiliation.” Jolly lost his seat in Congress two years ago to Rep. Charlie Crist (D), who, coincidentally, had previously given up on being a Republican.
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
