Republicans Take Lead in Generic Ballot
Posted in Main Blog (All Posts) on November 11th, 2009 5:38 am by HL
Republicans Take Lead in Generic Ballot
For the first time this year, a new Gallup poll of registered voters found more would vote for the Republican candidate than said they would vote for the Democratic candidate if elections for Congress were held today, 48% to 44%.
“The overall results would predict a likely strong Republican showing if the House elections were held today. Though the registered-voter results reported here speak to the preferences of all eligible voters, voter turnout is crucial in determining the final outcome of midterm elections. Gallup will not begin to model likely turnout until much closer to the 2010 elections, but given that Republicans usually have a turnout advantage, if normal turnout patterns prevail in the coming election, prospects for a good Democratic showing appear slim. Of course, the elections are still nearly 12 months away and conditions could shift back in the Democrats’ favor over this time.”
DeMint Seeks Term Limits
Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) introduced an amendment to the Constitution that would limit Senators to three six-year terms and House members to three two-year terms, the Washington Times reports.
However, Senate leaders said DeMint’s bill “had a zero chance of becoming law, mostly because of a general lack of interest and the high hurdles to amending the Constitution.”
“It takes a two-thirds vote of approval in both chambers to pass a constitutional amendment and then it must be ratified by three-fourths of the states. The last one to succeed — the 27th Amendment that delays pay raises for members of Congress until after the next election — was proposed in 1789 as part of the Bill of Rights but was not ratified by the states until 1992.”
Kasich Catches Strickland in Ohio
A new Quinnipiac poll in Ohio finds Gov. Ted Strickland (D) and John Kasich (R) in a dead heat, 40% to 40%, in their race for governor. Strickland held a 10 point lead in September.
Said pollster Peter Brown: “Obviously a lot has changed: the Governor’s own ratings have gone down more than the challenger’s have come up. Moreover, when voters are asked who could do a better job handling the state budget and rebuilding the state economy they say Kasich. We still have a year to go, but Kasich is in much better shape than one could have imaged earlier this year.”