Archive

Kansas Governor: What’s the Matter with Brownback?

by Nathan L. Gonzales January 31, 2014 · 2:58 PM EST

Is Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback at risk of losing re-election in a state Mitt Romney carried with 60 percent? An automated poll showing the GOP governor behind, a Democratic challenger who raised a million dollars, and a group of moderate Republicans threatening to oppose Brownback have some people…

Kansas 2 & 4: Primary Motivation

by Nathan L. Gonzales January 31, 2014 · 2:57 PM EST

Republicans don’t have a lot of women in Congress, so when one of them is challenged, the stakes are a bit higher.

At last weekend’s state Republican convention in Kansas, Rep. Lynn Jenkins drew a primary challenger. As vice chairwoman of the Republican Conference, she is the fifth highest…

Report Shorts (January 31, 2014) - Florida 13, Idaho 1, Montana At-Large, Oklahoma Senate

by Nathan L. Gonzales January 31, 2014 · 2:56 PM EST

Florida’s 13th District. The special election to replace the late Bill Young is heating up in this St. Petersburg-area seat. Republicans nominated lobbyist and former Young aide David Jolly earlier this month while Democratic hopes rest on the shoulders of former state Chief Financial Officer…

Income Inequality: Democrats Have Some Work to Do

by Stuart Rothenberg January 31, 2014 · 9:52 AM EST

The 14th question of the Jan. 22-25 NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll produced a set of responses I didn’t expect.

The poll asked, “When it comes to reducing income inequality between the rich and the poor, do you want to see the government more involved than it currently is, as involved as it…

2 Seats, 1 State, Zero Opportunities

by Nathan L. Gonzales January 30, 2014 · 12:01 PM EST

If Democrats plan to win Tom Coburn’s seat in Oklahoma, they’ll be working against the partisanship of the state and over six decades of history.

The Republican senator announced that he would leave his seat at the end of this Congress, two years before the end of his term. But the special…

You Can’t Make This Stuff Up — and It’s Only January

by Stuart Rothenberg January 29, 2014 · 10:13 AM EST

Sometimes, it’s difficult to tell the difference between a real news story and something from The Onion.

Earlier reports that entertainer Clay Aiken was considering a run for the Democratic nomination in North Carolina’s 2nd District have been overtaken by new stories about the singer “putting…

The Real Reasons Recruits Don’t Run

by Nathan L. Gonzales January 23, 2014 · 9:52 AM EST

I hate candidate recruitment stories.

More specifically, I hate stories that seem to blame the party campaign committees for their inability to coerce candidates to run.

In reality, there are so many factors that the committees cannot control that it’s simply unfair to hold them responsible…