Primary Day Primer: Your Guide to Key Races in 8 States ( The best of the best )

Washington Poast ^ | 06-06-06 | Chris Cillizza |

[george76]

Republicans make little secret that Angelides is their preferred opponent against Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in the fall as he can be more easily cast as a traditional liberal Democrat.

[Antoninus]

Nothing about NJ? We've got a primary too!

No More RINOS!
Ginty for Senate in NJ
Primary day is June 6, 2006

[george76]

California's 11th District: National Democrats have touted their chances of ousting Rep. Richard Pombo (R) since the start of the 2006 cycle.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has endorsed Steve Filson, a United Airlines pilot, although 2004 Democratic nominee Jerry McNerney, who was endorsed by the California Democratic Party, could well win the primary.

Pombo is being challenged by former Rep. Pete McCloskey (R),...

[george76]

New Jersey's 13th District: The elevation of Robert Menendez to the Senate opened up this northern New Jersey seat.

The frontrunner is state Assembly Speaker Emeritus Albio Sires, who started aggressively raising money for the race long before Menendez was formally named to the Senate by Gov. Jon Corzine (D).

Sires has the support of the local party organization in the district -- a key component in this district -- and has raised $1.2 million for the contest. Assemblyman Joseph Vas released a poll last month, however, that showed him with a two-point lead over Sires.

Whoever wins today's primary will be the next congressman due to the strong Democratic tilt of the seat.

[Clintonfatigued]

Big primary night ping

[george76]

Tell our FRiends to get out and vote.

[george76]

[socal_parrot]

Two Gray Davis bagmen lackies. There's a nice choice for the Dims.

[BurbankKarl]

One of the oddest attacks came in a race for a state Senate seat in which former Assemblyman George Nakano, D-Torrance, accused Assemblywoman Jenny Oropeza, D-Carson, of refusing to send her children to Los Angeles schools. Oropeza has no children.

[nckerr]

If you are a Freeper in NJ and do not vote for this Ginty guy, you are an idiot and I never want to hear you bash a RINO again. I just went to this guy's site and he is dead on conservative!

[RobFromGa]

thanks for the ping...

[Political Junkie Too]

Of the 11 Congressional Districts in the Bay Area, Pombo is the only Republican left. And he got to be a "Bay Area" congressmen only due to redistricting deals that eliminated Gary Condit's seat.

-PJ

[HitmanLV]

What's the threshold for RINOS these days, anyway?

Conservative 90% of the time?
Conservative 80% of the time?
Conservative 70% of the time?
Conservative 60% of the time?

Is there a sudden death issue that makes a conservative a RINO, regardless of his or her other positions?

[george76]

"The race is a dead heat between Democrat Francine Busby and Republican Brian Bilbray. Perhaps more telling, neither side is willing to make a prediction about the eventual winner.

Republicans clearly have more to lose in what should be a relatively safe seat for them (President Bush carried the district by 11 points in 2004). Should Bilbray fall on Tuesday, it will be seen as a sign of larger electoral problems facing the party in the fall.

Special election are not always predictive of how the next general election will play out. Democrats won specials in South Dakota and Kentucky in 2004 but went on to lose seats that November."

[george76]

Angelides(D) 44%, Westly(D) 36%

???

[fieldmarshaldj]

Want to hear real bizarro-world stuff ? In NJ-13 in the fall is likely to feature Albio Sires vs. John Guarini. Where it is weird is that precisely 20 years ago (when it was the 14th), the race was between a Cuban-American Keaniac Republican and a White Democrat incumbent. The future GOP apostate's name was Albio Sires, and John Guarini, the GOP standard-bearer is the son of the former Democrat incumbent, Frank Guarini, who stomped Sires 71-27% in a district that Reagan carried 53-47% 2 years earlier.

Quite interesting that Sires will be working to ensure the Menendez machine remains firmly in place in Hudson County, and working to defeat the son of the man for whom he was a protege, Tom Kean.

[Antoninus]

Is there a sudden death issue that makes a conservative a RINO, regardless of his or her other positions?

If a candidate is: pro-abortion, pro-homo, anti-gun, and anti-immigration enforcement, does that qualify as a RINO?

[Clemenza]

I was primary voter #12 in Ward 3, District One in Bayonne. I was the only one there and was signed in by a one armed Korean War vet who looked like he was ready to fall asleep.

All of the action around here is in the Democratic race for NJ-13 to replace Menendez. The district stretches from Carteret to Fort Lee, taking in all of Hudson County. Former Republican (TRAITOR!) Albio Siries is backed by Menendez, Corzine, and DeGise. His opponent is a Portuguese Communist (well, pro-Castro and associate of A.N.S.W.E.R anyway) Joseph Vas, the mayor of Perth Amboy.

Vas has been campaigning HARD in Bayonne and JC, which are the swing areas in this election. From what I see, Siries has held onto his base of support in the North Hudson/Berganline corridor, as well as Elizabeth, while Vas has his base in Middlesex, to say nothing of the heavily Portuguese districts in Newark, Harrison, and Kearny. The primary will therefore be decided among the Poles and elderly Italians in Bayonne (Vas has a TON of signs in Polish) and the blacks and Puerto Ricans in JC. Aint ethnic politics fun? ;-)

That being said, in a race between a corrupt former Republican (Sires) and an out and out Communist who should be deported back to Portugal (Vas), I'd hold my nose and support the traitor to the GOP over a member of the Pelosi/Murtha/Conyers caucus.

[Clemenza]

If a candidate is: pro-abortion, pro-homo, anti-gun, and anti-immigration enforcement, does that qualify as a RINO?

You've just described Rudy Giuliani to a "T."