Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* In a big surprise, a young, largely unknown Democratic candidate narrowly won a state Senate special election in Oklahoma yesterday, flipping a seat that had been held by a Republican. (Donald Trump won this district by 40 points last year.) According to the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, Dems have now flipped 32 state legislative seats this year from “red” to “blue,” including four in Oklahoma.
* In Alabama, a local Fox affiliate conducted a statewide poll and found Roy Moore (R) leading Doug Jones (D) by six, 49% to 43%. The same polls showed Moore with an 11-point advantage a couple of weeks ago.
* In Massachusetts, the latest WBUR poll shows incumbent Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D) and incumbent Gov. Charlie Baker (R) with significant advantages over their likely 2018 challengers.
* The latest national Marist poll found Democrats with an impressive lead on the generic congressional ballot, 51% to 36%. FiveThirtyEight’s Nate Silver added yesterday that if Dems can maintain that kind of support, they’ll take the House majority with relative ease.
* On a related note, a national Quinnipiac poll released yesterday pointed in a similar direction, showing Democrats ahead on the generic House ballot, 51% to 38%, and leading the generic Senate ballot, 52% to 39%. * The same Quinnipiac poll showed Donald Trump’s approval rating down to 35%. The results also found that only 40% of Americans believe Trump is fit for office — a new low for this president. * And in New York, Steve Louro, a prominent Republican donor and Trump supporter, “abruptly quit his post as regional finance chairman for the state’s Republican Party.” Louro made the announcement in response to the GOP’s tax plan, which would hit the Empire State especially hard.
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
