Not surprising really, considering incumbent Republican Dave Reichert’s refusal to actually campaign, but it looks like he suddenly has a real race on his hands:
Democrat Suzan DelBene is within striking distance against Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Wash.), according to an internal poll conducted for her campaign.
The poll, conducted Monday and Tuesday, found Reichert with 48 percent and DelBene with 44 percent, with 8 percent undecided.
Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin, Metz & Associates surveyed 400 likely voters and the poll carried a 4.9-point margin of error.
The results show DelBene moving in the right direction. The Democratic firm polled the race in August and found Reichert ahead 50 percent to 41 percent.
Last week a SurveyUSA poll showed DelBene closing within 7 points, down from the supposedly comfortable 13-point spread Reichert had enjoyed only one month before.
And before you simply dismiss these latest results as an internal poll, remember, that’s not how all this works. Candidates poll their own races to give themselves an accurate view of the political landscape, not to deceive themselves. The spin comes in choosing which poll results to release and which to keep private. So it does indeed appear that DelBene has some momentum.
Huh. Perhaps Reichert might want to reconsider his stealth campaign strategy, and maybe agree to a debate or two. That is, if he’s not too mentally impaired to handle it.
er is DelBene _ironically_ supporting a balanced budget just like every right wing wacko out there?
If nothing else, it will keep the Republicans occupied and spending money.
One more poll showing these kind of results and I might start to believe that we have a race on our hands.
Posted #2 as my righty doppelganger
Encouraging, but it’s pretty clear she really needed to get on the airwaves a lot earlier. At least she’s finally getting some name recognition.
The downside is that being within four points of an incumbent Congressman with only a week or so before the ballots drop requires a HUGE amount of momentum to change the mix. Burner was nearly in the same position a month earlier than DelBene is, and although she came close, she still came up short. And we don’t know what grenades Reichart has available to lob at DelBene once she starts getting close. I haven’t seen any Reichert ads yet, and I’m guessing he’s going to be spending some of that money if he feels threatened.
As long as Dave isn’t caught in bed with a dead girl or a live boy (as the old saw goes), he’ll probably feel he can safely coast in to the final tape. At this point a 1 to 2 point victory will seem like a landslide to him – especially since he hasn’t had to work very hard, or spend much money, to get there.
One thing the momentum shows is that once voters get to know DelBene, even if it’s only to hear her talk on a TV ad, they like her. She’s smart as a whip, articulate, and generally likable. I sincerely hope she can turn this into a victory for the Democrats.
I hope she has better ads than the first one I saw (does she have more out there?). It seemed a little too smug; the whole “I don’t have to take my paycheck, because I am so rich”. She needs to attack, attack, attack.
Dave was getting on a flight that I was getting off of in DC last week and I swear he is using steroids. Does he do nothing but lift weights? We can do better than Dave. Susan may not have caught fire, but it is encouraging to see the poll numbers move in her direction.
As a conservative I would like to see someone else run, maybe Dave will decide it’s time to retire and play with the grandkids. Is Reagan Dunn ready to go?
“…Is Reagan Dunn ready to go?…”
Oh, please, let it be so!!!!!
We could make sure everyone saw the home which he was selling because it just wasn’t big enough for him – what with the his-and-hers walk-in closets, butler’s pantry, etc.
Since when is marrying well a crime? What, you have to live in a double wide to be in Congress? If/when Reagan Dunn runs, he will kick anybody’s ass. Smart, good looking, social moderate (read pro-choice); he is exactly what the 8th would like in a candidate. Don’t know him personally, but those who do say he is also a pretty nice guy to boot.
But you’re right, he married too well, and that disqualifies him for public office.
Tell you what nuckle head, I will give you odds; 5 points? 10 points? I will take either one.
Of course, DelBene has closed the gap, she’s running ads sounding like a fiscal conservative. She’s obviously lying because she also has a D after her name. If elected, she’d be in there spending borrowed Chinese money like all the other pigs in Nancy’s trough.
That’s what I’ve heard as well.
@8
Do you have the capacity for individual thought? I can Google ‘right wing talking points’ as well, but please, come up with something original to represent yourself with.
10 – Towing the batshit insane right wing line is Delbert’s calling.
@ rhp6033:
Actually, Burner peaked too early. She had a 5 point lead when the ballots were mailed. Unfortunately, the Harvard degree boondoggle, spun to Reichert’s advantage by the local media, stopped her at the one yard line as time expired.
10 and 11
But, the Bush Administration didn’t spend borrowed Chinese money and didn’t run up a deficit, correct? So, don’t be so harsh on little delbert.
@ 10 Back to english 101 for you.
Reichert should be voted out unless he’s willing to debate.
It’s embarassing to have a representative who is not willing to talk about his views in an open forum.
If he gets elected, it’s fair to say that the 8th gets the representative they deserve.
On second thought, that was a bad metaphor. It allowed Reichert to stage a 4th quarter comeback with a Hail Mary as time expired.
Goldy: please get in touch with me asap about a mutual friend. John.
Yawm, oh my, all I want for Christmas is at least one dem to win, at least one dem to win, at least one dem to win. All I want for Christmas is at least one Dem to win, so I can post something positive here…..
[Deleted — see HA Comment Policy]
@14
You’re correct, but if you are going to be such a stickler, you might want to check the spelling of ‘nuckle.’
If you can’t correct your own spelling errors (which is almost idiot proof nowadays since the system will highlight it for you and suggest corrections) do you really think you should be sarcastically correcting others?
You KLOWNS are hysterical.
Did you actually read who did the polling?
Partisan polling firms are notorious for putting out encouraging numbers to try and rally the troops one last time.
I’m happy for y’all to get so excited…over nothing.
You KLOWNS are desperate…desperate.
As I said before, I hope the Dems maintain control of the House & Senate by 1 vote so ImamObaMao has no one to blame in 2012 (when 23 of the 33 Senate Seats are Dems or those who caucus with Dems).
PS–
Goldy, are you drunk or high??
This post would lead a reasonable person to conclude YES…either that or you are crazy.
Neither one is good.
Cynny
Your fervent wish that this country continue to experience bad times until 2012 just so that Obama is not reelected marks you as a truly unpatriotic and un-Christian person. How could anyone who cares about humanity and this nation pray for two more years of pain and hardship? You are sick. And, I mean that from the bottom of my heart.
It looks like the Psycho-KLOWN could use a dose of the same meds that are keeping Puddy so heavily sedated these days.
@22 The KLOWN has put party before country as long as I’ve been around. For a guy whose party might do well in November, he’s certainly acting like his head might explode any second. Of course if they lose again, and after he puts his head back together, he’ll go back to calling for a armed revolution. He was doing that from November 2008 on up until Rasmussen started giving him hope. Then he cleaned up his act. Well, cleaned up for a Psycho-KLOWN anyway.
22. proud leftist spews:
So wishing for the Dems to be in charge for 2 more years is unpatriotic??
Yeah, I guess you are right.
2 more years of pain & hardship?
Yup, I guess if the Dems are still in charge that will happen.
I apologize-
Let’s all (you included) pray for a Republican Landslide.
After all, as you so dgoofily pointed out, to want the Dems in charge for 2 more years is real sick.
Are you a real sick bastard PL?
Wow…that’s SUPER bad for Reichert. In a year supposedly just god given for Republicans to have a Republican incumbent under threat from a virtual unknown does not speak well for him. If he survives it’s just going to be by hairs margin.
blah blah blah rasmussen poll….blah blah Obama socialist…blah blah alien’s anal probed me…blah blah bigfoot kidnapped by baby….blah blah Bush was brilliant…blah
Despite the fact that HA Klowns here think exposing DelBenzene’s empty voting record is a sign of desperation, I hope Reichert or the NRCC nails her with it. It’s a travesty to shirk one’s civic duty to vote, no matter how busy you are. Hell, you don’t even need to move your butt from your desk chair to vote in this nanny state. The ballot comes to you.
DelBenzene is nothing more than Darcy Burner with a bank account. Rob S. @12 would have you believe that even that dilletante was ahead of Reichert in 2006 but only in another one of those “internal” democrap polls.
It’s a simple campaign tactic to commission dem polsters to give you good results to use in order to psych-up your base. Face it, even with our pathetic mail in ballot system, there won’t be enough DelBenzene supporters to carry her over the line.
I guess you Klowns can hope it’s close enough for King County to ‘find’ some votes for her.