Probably not, any more that Coons thought he'd be running for Senate when he shot his mouth off about marxism. But she did appear on the show making those comments, and people like Maher are using them. Her financial blunders are a matter of record, and her opponents are using them. Coons and his campaign will take advantage of anything they can, just as O'Donnell's campaign would if the situation was reversed.
“Probably not, any more that Coons thought he’d be running for Senate when he shot his mouth off about marxism”
There’s a major difference.
Coons can’t run on being a marxist, even though his politics are still founded on it. He has to lie, and deny he’s a marxist. Most Democrats face this problem, although many of them first deny it to themselves.
O’Donnell doesn’t have to deny anything.