Looking Good in Rhode Island
An often overlooked race in the Democratic Party’s battle to win back control of Congress, the Rhode Island Senate race continues to get more interesting. Rhode Island Secretary of State Matt Brown (D) dropped out of the race this April, leaving former Attorney General Sheldon Whitehouse (D) as the presumptive nominee to battle Lincoln Chafee in the general election. While Chafee is considered a moderate in the GOP, Rhode Island is a decidedly blue state that seems poised to go bluer this cycle.
A new Brown University poll out today shows Whitehouse leading Chafee for the first time in the race. Via PW.
If the general election is held today, 38 percent say they will vote for Sheldon Whitehouse, 37 percent support Senator Chafee, and 25 percent are undecided (compared to Chafee’s lead of 40 to 34 percent in February).
If the Republican nominee is Mayor Laffey, Whitehouse is ahead by 55 to 25 percent (up from the 44 to 29 percent Whitehouse had in February).
This is an absolutely essential pickup for the Dems in ‘06 if we want to retake the Senate. You can help by volunteering or contributing.
July 20th, 2006 at 3:49 am
Sheldon Whitehouse has a primary and his numbers are not nearly as strong as reported. There are a dozen Democratic primaries in Providence ward seats with most having Latino challengers.
Citizen latinos and minorities account for 17% of the state population and are concentrated in the city and surrounding areas.
Sheldon does not poll well with minorities.