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Mar 10
2010
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Vulnerable Senate Seat Report: Barbara BoxerPosted by: James Bell in APP Blog |
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The days of Ronald Reagan are gone and Democrats have transformed California into one of their greatest strongholds. Senator Barbara Boxer, the sponsor of the (unsuccessful) Freedom of Choice Act to enshrine Roe v. Wade in law, is one of the most far left Democrats in the Senate.
That was before all three of her G.O.P. challengers cut her polling advantage to less than 6%.
The most recent primary poll shows liberal former Representative Tom Campbell at 32%, moderate former Hewlett-Packard C.E.O. Carly Fiorina at 18.5%, and conservative State Assemblyman Chuck DeVore at 11%. But with 39% of likely GOP primary voters undecided and with few voters very certain this early on, the race is still considered to be up for grabs.
The New York Times predicted that Carly Fiorina and Chuck DeVore would split the conservative G.O.P. vote, allowing Tom Campbell to waltz to victory with the liberal G.O.P. and some of the unaffiliated independent votes. However, it has not been smooth sailing for the liberal Republican. Carly Fiorina welcomed him into the race by attacking him with the now-infamous “Demon Sheep” ad. She was criticized for the over-the-top quality of the ad, but she has kept Campbell on the defensive ever since, forcing him to defend anti-Israel votes and his support of tax hikes.
Now, the L.A. Times is breaking a new scandal of Campbell falsely denying a letter he wrote to defend a radical Islamic professor who was a donor to his campaigns. Campbell is in hot water, to put it mildly, and it is unclear if his poll numbers will be able to survive the onslaught (and money) of the Fiorina campaign.
Conservative pundit Dick Morris believes that Carly Fiorina, who has by far the most money (including $2.5 million of her own) in the race, can pull ahead of Tom Campbell – describing her as a “successful businesswoman.” She has gained the support of the Republican establishment, with a swathe of sitting Republican Senators endorsing her.
However, she too has run into some stormy waters. Tom Campbell has accused her of slander, which has hurt her somewhat. And Arianna Packard, the granddaughter of HP co-founder David Packard, has slammed Carly Fiorina in an article in Politico. She argues that the only reason that Fiorina is no longer the CEO of HP is because she was fired for almost destroying the entire company. She endorses Assemblyman Chuck DeVore as a real conservative.
In early February, George Will surprised everyone by predicting that Chuck DeVore would emerge victorious. The truth is that Chuck DeVore would have to turn this into a three way race and thread the needle in order to win.
However, he has won a string of critical endorsements that have allowed his poll numbers and fundraising numbers to grow: Senator Jim DeMint’s Senate Conservatives Fund on November 3rd, the Erick Erickson’s conservative blog Redstate on February 11th, radio host Mark Levin on February 16th, and the California Republican Assembly, “conscience of the Republican Party,” on March 7th. However, in order to turn the race into a three way race, he needs the coveted endorsement of Sarah Palin, which vaunted NY-23’s Doug Hoffman to stardom. Without her endorsement, anything he does will be too little … too late.
And whoever wins will be the underdog against Barbara Boxer …
Polling Scorecard If Race Was Held Today – Republicans Pick Up 8 Seats.




