Secretary of State Elaine Marshall has assembled a veteran team of political consultants to help her in her bid for the U.S. Senate.

Her pollster is Celinda Lake of Washington, who has worked for candidates ranging from former President Bill Clinton and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Harvey Gantt's 1996 Senate campaign, Rob Christensen reports. Lake, who is regarded as expert in framing in issues for women, also worked for Marshall's unsuccessful 2002 Senate campaign.

Her media consultant is Doc Sweitzer of Philadelphia, whose clients have included Al Gore' 1988 presidential campaign and New Jersey Governor Jim Florio's race. He has extensive experience in working for North Carolina Democrats including state Treasurer Richard Moore and Congressmen Robin Britt, Bill Hefner, Martin Lancaster, Brad Miller and Steve Neal.

Marshall's general consultant is Thomas Mills of Chapel Hill, who has worked for the Kerry-Edwards campaign, for Congressman Larry Kissell and Eva Clayton and Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy among other candidates.

Marshall is one of two Democrats who have announced for the seat held by Republican Sen. Richard Burr. Lawyer Kenneth Lewis has also announced his candidacy.

Is it possible that North Carolina voters aren't happy with Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, but still like him a lot better than any of the Democratic alternatives?

That seems to be the message from the latest survey by Public Policy Polling, a Democratic firm that surveyed 683 voters from Oct. 2-4.

Burr's approval rating was just 36 percent. That's down slightly from last month's survey, which had Burr's approval rating at 38 percent.

But when voters were asked about possible match-ups with some of the possible Democratic candidates, Burr easily came out on top. Here's a look at what the survey found:

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Sen. Richard Burr has at least a 10-point lead over his challengers, according to a new Rasmussen poll.

The Rasmussen Reports poll found of 500 likely voters found Burr ahead of longtime Secretary of State Elaine Marshall 48 percent to 38 percent.

U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge, who has been courted for the race, trails by 48 to 34 percent.

Burr leads Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis, who like Marshall has officially declared for the race, by even more — 48 percent to 32 percent.

The news isn't all great for Burr.

"Despite Burr’s early lead, however, incumbents who poll under 50% are generally considered vulnerable," the pollster said.

The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percent. 

Other Democrats looking at the race include former state Sen. Cal Cunningham of Lexington, former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker of Sanford, and Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy.

Former N.C. Chief Justice Henry Frye has agreed to be honorary co-chairman of Kenneth Lewis' U.S. Senate campaign.

Lewis, a Durham attorney, was a law clerk for Frye, who was the first African-American to head North Carolina's judicial system, Rob Christensen reports.

"When I first met Kenneth over 20 years ago," Frye said, "he was a smart, idealistic young lawyer determined to use his legal training to break down the barriers to educational and economic opportunity facing communities across North Carolina."

'"Kenneth's legal career, as a business and community development lawyer, is a long record of using the law to find common ground between the private sector and the non-profit community," Frye said. "His experience in community development, coupled with his expertise in business law, makes Kenneth uniquely qualified to represent North Carolina in the U.S Senate."

Lewis is the first Democrat to enter the 2010 race for the seat held by Republican Sen. Richard Burr. Secretary of State Elaine Marshall has formed an exploratory committee. Other Democrats looking at the race include former state Sen. Cal Cunningham of Lexington, Congressman Bob Etheridge of Lillington, former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker of Sanford, and Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy.

U.S. Sen. Richard Burr's approval rating remains below 40 percent, which might ordinarily be bad news for a politician, but he's still ahead of any of his potential Democratic challengers in next year's election, according to a poll released Friday.

The approval rating for Burr, a Republican, was 38 percent, according to the survey by Public Policy Polling, a Democratic firm. In matchups against possible Democratic opponents, Burr beat:

U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge, of Lillington, by 41 to 34 percent.

Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, who officially launched her candidacy this week, and former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker, by the same margin of 42 to 31 percent.

Former N.C. Sen. Cal Cunningham by 42 to 30 percent.

Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy by 43 to 29 percent.

Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis by 43 to 27 percent.

The survey of 600 voters was taken Sept. 2 to 8 and has a margin of error of 4 percent.

Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy traveled to Washington last week to meet with members of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and others familiar with U.S. Senate campaigns, Foy said while waiting for a plane back to North Carolina.

"I'm just trying to get a clear idea of what the possibilities are," he said. "I'm trying to consult a whole lot of people. ... It's got to be best for North Carolina."

So far, Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis have announced their campaigns to unseat Republican Sen. Richard Burr, reports Jesse DeConto.

U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge, another Democrat, is also mulling a run. Etheridge says the DSSC has been courting him to run, and former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker also said he has been in touch with the committee. Former state Sen. Cal Cunningham of Lexington is also looking at the race.

DSSC spokesman Eric Schultz said Burr holds one of two incumbent Republican seats the committee is targeting in 2010.

"We believe Sen. Burr's especially vulnerable," Schultz said. "He's been very explicit that he doesn't want to lift a finger on healthcare or the economy."

Update: "It speaks to the lack of depth of the Democrat bench in North Carolina that more than half a dozen potential Senate candidates – including one who was personally lobbied by President Obama in the White House – have passed on a bid in 2010,” said Colin Reed, a spokesman for the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge still isn't saying whether he intends to challenge U.S. Sen. Richard Burr next year.

But he's not saying no, either, The (Dunn) Daily Record reports. Etheridge, a Lillington Democrat was asked during a visit to the paper about whether he intends to run against Burr, a Winston-Salem Republican.

"I don’t know about that," Rep. Etheridge said with a wide grin.

He said he has been in contact with the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee over the past few months.

"They’re doing a lot of talking," he said.

The paper notes that the stakes are high for Etheridge, who now sits on the powerful Ways and Means Committee in the House.

Etheridge's answer will likely help others decide whether to take a shot. Kenneth Lewis, a Durham lawyer, has announced his candidacy. But others, including former state Sen. Cal Cunningham, Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy have all expressed interest but haven't committed yet. Democrats have also been courting former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker.

Update: Later, Etheridge told Dome that it had been at least two weeks since he had spoken to the DSCC. A follow-up question was met with, "Gotta go…"

And during a conference call on health reform last Tuesday, he was similarly vague to a reporter from a Capitol Hill newspaper.

"Today is not the day I plan to talk about it. Thank you very much, though," Etheridge said.

The FiveThirtyEight blog ranks Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Burr's seat as the 11th most likely to change parties in next year's Senate elections.

The blog, which analyzes polling data, reports that Republicans are now more likely to gain seats than lose seats in next year's elections. Burr's seat ranks 11 of 15 on the blog's August ranking in likelihood that it would change party. That's an improvement for Burr, whose seat was listed by the blog as seventh most likely to change parties in May. 

Citing analysis by the Democratic firm Public Policy Polling, FiveThirtyEight's Nate Silver says that Burr's low-name recognition and low approval numbers suggest that his chances will depend on whether the election is an anti-incumbent year. 

That may be especially true since the Democrats are still scrambling to find a credible challenger to Burr. Rob Christensen reports that Democrats are "going through an awkward dance to find a candidate to go toe-to-toe with Burr in 2010."

"There is a vacuum," said Gary Pearce, a veteran Democratic strategist in Raleigh. "Nobody has really stepped in to fill it, nobody with the name or the money or the backing to put an end to all of this."

So the list of potential Democratic candidates continues to grow. There are little-known figures such as former state Sen. Cal Cunningham of Lexington, Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis and Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy who seem eager to jump into the race.

And there are potential candidates who are better known, but seem less sure. They include U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge of Lillington, former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker of Sanford, and Secretary of State Elaine Marshall of Lillington.

Former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker is being courted as a possible opponent to Republican Sen. Richard Burr next year, and he is at least listening.

Wicker, a Sanford resident who practices law in Raleigh, said he has had conversations with the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, former Gov. Jim Hunt and others, Rob Christensen reports.

"I’m still passionate about creating jobs and a higher standard for education and affordable health care," Wicker said.

"And I still have those pangs of emotion about being involved in public service. But I have been focused on my practice."

BUT.

"I’m doing some listening," Wicker said.

Wicker, 57, served two terms as lieutenant governor and six terms in the state House. He lost the Democratic nomination for governor in 2000 to Mike Easley.

The Democratic field for U.S. Senate is regarded as wide open.

One Democrat, Kenneth Lewis, a Durham attorney, has announced his candidacy. Three others, Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, former state Sen. Cal Cunningham of Lexington, and Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy are looking at the race.

Polling numbers show that Burr is not very well known and his favorability ratings are lackluster, but polls suggest he could defeat any of the Democratic names being mentioned.

The numbers continue to look bad for U.S. Sen. Richard Burr.

Public Policy Polling, a Democratic polling firm, surveyed 749 North Carolina voters from Aug. 4-10, and found that only 38 percent approve of the job he is doing, while 32 percent disapprove. The rest, 30 percent, were not sure.

PPP notes that former Republican Sen. Elizabeth Dole's favorability rating in August 2007 were 48 percent. She was defeated the following year by Democrat Kay Hagan.

But PPP also notes that Burr continues to match up well against possible Democratic opponents next year. The survey found that Burr leads Secretary of State Elaine Marshall by 12 points, former state Sen. Cal Cunningham of Lexington by 15 points, Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis by 16 points and Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy by 16 points.

The survey's margin of error was plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.