Tuesday, July 18, 2006

Ricketts (R) vs Nelson (R?)


Ricketts needs to pull out the real GOP big guns

In a poll also by Rasmussen, Ben Nelson has a solid lead over Pete Ricketts, 57% to 31%.

What’s really killing Ricketts however is a lowly 57% approval rating by GOP voters, where Nelson has a 79% approval rating with the Nebraska GOP.

To an extent this isn’t surprising coming out of a hotly contested primary where Ricketts won handily, but still only had 48% of the vote. That’s a big chunk of GOP voters who may still hold a grudge against the guy who beat their candidate. Don Stenberg’s call to Nebraska Right to Life on behalf of Pete Ricketts may begin part of the healing process. But Ricketts better know that he needs Kramer, Stenberg and any other GOP stalwart he can muster to show that the GOP is unified.

It waits to be seen whether he can persuade more of the GOP, and particularly Stenberg and Kramer to go on TV for him. It’s obvious that until he shores up the GOP base, he will have no shot against the incumbent.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

You are so right. There is way too much division within the R's right now and it's working to E. Benjamin's advantage without him even trying. Elephants of Nebraska Unite!

Anonymous said...

Wow SS -
you seem almost depressed. what you forgot to point out is that SENATOR NELSON is opening up more of a lead since the last poll in June. the Primary was over 30 days before THAT poll.
The most significant number in the poll is the Ricketts disapproval rating of 50% - that's devestating. And it will take more that $5 million to reverse. Pete is in deep doo doo. And he doesnt have the advantages HAgel (presidential election) and Stenberg (presidential election and three state wide wins) going for him.
Hopefully, he saves that $6K in poperty taxes. It might be all he has left after trying to beat Nelson.

Street Sweeper said...

Thanks for your concern about my state of well being there polwatcher, but my emotions don’t rise and fall with the polls.

"Deep doo doo"? Eloquent.

Anonymous said...

For the history buffs, Nelson lost in '96 more than Hagel won if you recall the tracking polls from September thru election night. Rarely has a politican snatched such a defeat from the jaws of victory as did Nelson. That was due mostly to campaign problems in the Nelson camp. So camparisons are rather meaningless this round.

Anonymous said...

Well guys - you all cant have it both ways. Everyone points to Bush's 66% in NE in 04 as a reason Ricketts can win. In 2000, Bush's margin in NE was the biggest in the country and the ONLY reason Stenberg got so close. And in 1996 there were many factors - including the quality of the Hagel campaign, the disaster of a campaign Nelson ran, Nelson's pledge to stay in office and -no denying it -Clinton on the ticket that drove up GOP voter participation.

Its a fact.

Let me thank you SS and DB for the personal insults. It had been a while and I thought you guys were getting soft as Ricketts' message.

Street Sweeper said...

No personal insults coming from here on this post, though I reserve the right to toss one out at any time.