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Norm Coleman polling the Gov race (again)?

by: Joe Bodell

Tue Dec 22, 2009 at 08:58:56 AM CST


A report from a reader about a political survey -- and this poll sounds legit, as opposed to the dreck the Republican Party of Minnesota has been putting out on the phones.
I thought I'd pass on a tip that I received a political survey this evening, and while they wouldn't say who paid for it, I'd put money on Norm Coleman. The number was 202-870-5104. I think they said their org was the Capitol Report or something similar (should have written that down earlier). They asked for right track/wrong track for Minnesota, biggest issue, favorable or unfavorable on Pawlenty, Emmer, Anderson, Norm, Rybak and Dayton, which Republican I would prefer, which Democrat I would prefer, head-to-heads with Rybak and Dayton vs. Norm, feelings on the recount (should Norm have dropped out? Or was it his right to challenge results?), and the claim that 11,000 ballots hadn't been counted in recount: if they had been counted, who did I think would have won?

That's my basic memory of the call. I'd take that as a strong indication that this was sponsored by Norm and was being used to gauge whether or not he should get in or not.

The fact that the head-to-heads involving Norm Coleman were asked might indeed be an indication that Coleman himself is polling the field to figure out if he should jump in -- that possibility is reinforced by the ask about the 2008 Senate race and feelings about how that ordeal ended.

If it is indeed Coleman polling the race, I doubt we'll see any of these numbers published anywhere. Which is too bad, I'd love to see how this one shakes out.

As I've previously mentioned, it would be a great move for Coleman to jump into this race -- for the Democratic nominee. This is a guy who has snatched defeat from the jaws of victory in statewide races twice, and a third time barely beat a recently deceased opponent and his surrogate.

Those DFL candidates mentioned in that poll should be licking their chops at the possibility of facing Norm.

Joe Bodell :: Norm Coleman polling the Gov race (again)?
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Dayton/Entenza/MAK would lose to Coleman (0.00 / 0)
To win we must think strategically, not emotionally.  Just because we know Coleman to be a buffoon doesn't mean the electorate agrees.  He beat the most recognizable and respected Democrat in the state in 2002, and lost to Franken by only a handful of votes in a year of a Democratic tsunami at the polls.  Whether we like it or not, the facts are that a sizable portion of the electorate will vote for Norm, especially now that public opinion is swinging against Democrats.


Bakk and Thissen are the best candidates to take on Norm (0.00 / 0)
I should add: If we put up our own buffoons to challenge Norm, we are fools.  We need a candidate to bridge gaps and energize the state, not just the DFL delegates.  Tom Bakk or Paul Thissen would fare far better than the three-headed monster of Dayton/Entenza/MAK.

[ Parent ]
MrsPragmatic On a Mission (0.00 / 0)
And once again, I disagree with her mission. Dayton has an excellent chance of winning. So does Rybak. First, almost everyone likes them. They both have great personalities. They have both done a lot of good. And they could both beat Norm Coleman. People in MN are sick to death of Coleman. Hasn't he learned that yet? People vote for all kinds of reasons. Issues, personalities, name recognition, what the candidate has done to help others, and how much they think the candidate cares about what they themselves care about. If there is a candidate who thinks it's all about him or her, he or she won't win. Which candidate listens the best? Which one has a long history of government experience? My top three candidates are Dayton, Thissen, and Rybak. Any of them have a top chance of beating any Republican. The last 20 years were then; this is now. Things have changed in the last two decades. Everything has gone downhill. Minnesotans want a reNEWed Minnesota. And by god, they're going to get it. Grassroots works wonders.

Don't cook your own goose.

[ Parent ]
Just hyperbole, or actual analisys and reason (0.00 / 0)
It looks like you are eliminating the "Big City Liberal" candidates. I could see this, if Norm contrasted that by being a greater Minnesota guy, but he's not. He's big city too, so it kind of eliminates that from the negatives of Bakk/Dayton/MAK. It sounds like you are just a supporter of the other two guys, which is fine. Just saying MAK/Dayton/Entenza don't stand a chance against Norm doesn't make it so. Why did you exclude Rybak from your city slicker triumvirate?

Anyway, you can spin Normies electoral history however you want. I could just as easily say that Normest Gump couldn't even beat the most divisive major party candidate in Minnesota history. Franken, who I supported, was still divisive within his own party and outside of it.

As far as Mondale, he had a week to campaign. Granted he had to die for name recognition, but he had a week.

Also, recall that absentee ballots were all screwed up beause second ones had to be issued with the name change, so people could submit a second absentee ballot. Imagine the absentee chaos compared to this years absentee drama. It was magnified tremendously.

finally, Kiffmeyer was the SOS during the time and she fought tooth and nail to make sure it was as hard as possible for people to vote for Mondale. See the case below for a reminder.

Coleman's popularity is seriously debate able. Aside from that, could you explain why your candidates would fare better vs. the other three you mentioned?

news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/election2002/erlvkiff103102ord.pdf

   


2002 was odd too (0.00 / 0)
If we're going to say Coleman is strong because he almost beat Franken in a Democratic year, then what can be taken from his win in 2002, a strong Republican year? Or if Coleman lost in 2008 only under weird circumstances, was 2002 less weird? Not only did Wellstone die, but hi memorial pissed off independents and galvanized Republicans, besides Mondale having no time to campaign and being unknown to many younger voters.

The other fact is many Republicans think Coleman is too liberal. They also know, or they must know, he damaged himself politically by pressing hopeless cases to the courts and adding most of the delay in settling the race. The fact he polls well mostly comments on how weak a field the GOP has for governor.

Of course, we should have learned by now that predictability just isn't a characteristic of Minnesota statewide elections.  


[ Parent ]
This is exactly why the DFL fares so poorly (0.00 / 0)
Nonsensical, emotional diatribes are not going to get us anywhere but the loser's circle ... again ... where we've been since 1990 when it comes to gubernatorial contests.  

The Dayton/Entenza/MAK "triumvirate" is not geographic, but rather comprised of those candidates most identified with the brand of DFL politics that has been getting killed for years.  Has Entenza's MN 2020 put a dent in Pawlenty?  How about the Speaker's leadership this past session?  And what about Dayton's incoherent screaming about his D- Senate career?  These political machines DON'T WORK!

These candidates may be the greatest people in the world, but the electorate doesn't think so.  When it comes to campaigns, what else matters?


[ Parent ]
I couldn't agree more MrsPragmatic (0.00 / 0)
Nonsensical, emotional diatribes are not going to get us anywhere but the loser's circle. That is why I asked you to clarify with some reasons why you thought those three were all losers. Because your diatribe lacked any rationality, I could only guess why you thought those three stunk. Now I know. I agree they have those faults. Thanks for sharing.

[ Parent ]
MN 2020 is doing some good (0.00 / 0)
I'm going to come to the defense of MN 2020 because I think they are having an impact. It's hard to know just how much credit they get for specific election results, but the success the DFL had last year indicates they at minimum aren't hurting. They get used by reporters as sources, and when an organization like that can get into reporters' rolodexes, and their press releases get read and used, they're having an impact.

[ Parent ]

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