Elaine Marshall

Money request rankles lobbyists

bkrueger — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:37:18 -0500

There has been some grumbling among lobbyists who thought it was inappropriate that they received a campaign solicitation from Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, whose office regulates lobbyists.

Marshall, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate race next year, sent out an e-mail solicitation on her birthday (Nov. 18) asking for an $18 campaign donation to mark the occasion, reports Rob Christensen.

"We didn't intentionally put any lobbyists on the list," said Thomas Mills, Marshall's campaign manager. "If they got a solicitation it is because they had some sort of relationship with Secretary Marshall in the past. We would be glad to remove their names."

Mills said the solicitation went out to a broad range of people, including people who had contributed to her past campaigns, friends and others. He said people can easily unsubscribe from Marshall's e-mail list.

Marshall pollster: Yes she can!

markjohnson — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 07:14:34 -0500

With the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee trying to recruit former state Sen. Cal Cunningham into the race, Elaine Marshall has issued a poll memorandum arguing why she would be a strong opponent of Republican Sen. Richard Burr next year.

The memo by her pollster, Celinda Lake, notes that in every poll taken this year, Burr has failed to gain majority support, Rob Christensen reports.

"Burr's reelection numbers are among the lowest in the nation with just one-fifth of the voters (21 percent) indicating their plans to support his reelection," writes Lake. The memo argues that Marshall, the Secretary of State who has announced her candidacy, is as strong in the polls as Congressman Bob Etheridge, who the senatorial committee had tried to recruit into the race. Etheridge announced last week that he would not be a candidate for the Senate.

"In sum," writes Lake, "Senator Burr is vulnerable. Voters have a net-unfavorable impression of him and a strong plurality is ready to vote for someone else. Secretary Marshall is well-liked and a strong competitor against Burr. Her record of service and her fund raising capabilities makes her the Democrat to beat in the race."

The memo does not mention Cunningham, the former state senator and Iraqi war veteran from Lexington, who the committee is trying to recruit into the race.

Dome memo: Ethics and fence-sitting

bniolet — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 06:18:32 -0500

GRADE STIMULUS: A Goldsboro middle school was lambasted this week for its plan to award extra test points — enough to raise a letter grade — in exchange for cash contributions for the school. The lesson for students: Hard work, perseverance and positive attitude will be rewarded. And if that doesn't work, a nice crisp $20 couldn't hurt.

CHOPPED LIVER; The race for the Democratic nomination to challenge U.S. Sen. Richard Burr got lots of attention this week. Lexington lawyer Cal Cunningham is out. U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge is going for a new fence-sitting record. Two others are thinking about it. All the buzz about candidates who aren't running can't be flattering to the only two people who are: lawyer Kenneth Lewis and Secretary of State Elaine Marshall.

SHE'S BACK: Gov. Bev Perdue got a big bump in her job approval, apparently because of her refusal to release violent inmates despite a court ruling. Perdue has been hitting the public events pretty hard and making big announcements. A few more ribbon cuttings and another stand at a jail-house door and Perdue might just be liked again.

IN OTHER NEWS: Sen. Martin Nesbitt appears to have a lock on the job of Senate majority leader...The state's pension fund is beginning to recover from a financial slump...Barack Obama's campaign was the source of the tip that John Edwards got $400 haircuts.

Etheridge has decided, not telling yet

bniolet — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:36:48 -0500

U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge has still has not issued a statement on whether he will challenge Republican Sen. Richard Burr next year.

But Dome would be shocked if he announces for the Senate. The word in Democratic circles is that Etheridge has decided to seek re-election to his House seat.

Etheridge has been heavily courted by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee since last spring as the strongest potential challenger to Burr. But Etheridge has always been politically cautious and has passed on Senate races in the past. And he recently gained a coveted seat on the House Ways and Means Committee.

The Lillington Democrat has already told the senatorial committee his decision, but they asked him to put off an announcement for a day or two.

Poll: Burr's numbers up slightly

bkrueger — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:49:08 -0500

North Carolinians appear to be a bit more satisfied with U.S. Sen. Richard Burr .

The latest survey by Public Policy Polling shows that the numbers have improved slightly for Burr, a Winston-Salem Republican who is up for re-election next year.

PPP surveyed 711 North Carolina voters from Nov. 9-11. They found that 40 percent of North Carolinians approve of the job Burr is doing, while 31 percent disapprove. That's better than the 38 percent rating Burr got in last month's poll by PPP, and 36 percent in September.

Burr continues to come out on top when voters are asked about match-ups with potential Democratic candidates.

Burr leads U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge (45-35), Secretary of State Elaine Marshall (45-34), former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker (45-33), Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy (44-32), and Chapel Hill attorney Ken Lewis (45-32).

The survey's margin of error was plus or minus 3.7 percentage points.

Foy still thinking

bniolet — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:09:06 -0500

Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy says he hopes to decide by the end of the month whether to enter the U.S. Senate race.

"I'm still talking to people," Foy said. "It's been an education for me to find out what people are thinking about."

He said the main concern is that people are worried about the economy.

"A lot of people are concerned about what kind of representation we have," Foy said. "We are an emerging dominate state and have weak federal representation."

The most daunting aspect of a Senate race, Foy said, was the millions of dollars that would have to be raised.

So far two Democrats have entered the race to challenge Republican Richard Burr: Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis.

GOP gloats over Cunningham decision

bniolet — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:22:02 -0500

The National Republican Senatorial Committee is doing a little victory dance over former state Sen. Cal Cunningham's decision not to challenge Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Burr next year.

By the GOP's count (which looks an awful lot like a list compiled by Dome), Cunningham is the 10th Democrat who has looked at the Senate race and decided to take a pass, Rob Christensen reports. Here is the Republican's list: Attorney General Roy Cooper, Rep. Heath Shuler, Rep. Mike McIntyre, Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton, Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker, state Rep. Grier Martin, state Rep. Tricia Cotham, former state Treasurer Richard Moore, and state Sen. Malcolm Graham.

"Once again," said Republican spokesman Colin Reed, "the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and national Democrats have suffered a serious setback in their efforts to land a top-tier candidate in North Carolina."

Likely disagreeing with that sentiment are the two announced Democrats, Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis. U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge and Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy are looking at the race.

Update: Also disagreeing with Reed was DSCC communications director Eric Schultz.

"Aside from Senator John Ensign, Senator Burr has the lowest approval rating of any Republican in the United States Senate. That’s because he’s beholden to the special interests in Washington. He will face a formidable opponent next November."

Cunningham no longer quacks

bniolet — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 09:47:21 -0500

Cal Cunningham's poll numbers didn't move much during the period where he was exploring a bid for U.S. Senate.

Cunningham, a Lexington lawyer, was the non-candidate candidate, who appeared at events and quietly looked at a run against Republican Sen. Richard Burr, giving Dome plenty of chances to use duck similes. Now, Dome must put away the quacks because Cunningham is out.

It's likely that his decision had something to do with whatever it is U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge will decide about the race.

It's also helpful to note that Cunningham had the same level of support against Burr in October than he did in February. Public Policy Polling noted in February that Burr was leading Cunningham 46 to 27. In October, the pollster pulled the same percentages. Pollster.com, which averages and analyzes polling data, showed that Cunningham's support over time was only slightly better than a flat line.

And for the record, Pollster.com shows declared candidate Kenneth Lewis with an average of 29.1 percent to Burr's 44.5. It's notable that Lewis and Cunningham, two unknowns, were getting similar numbers suggesting that polling results in their cases are more about Burr's level of support.

Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, also a declared candidate, has 31.2 percent to Burr's 43.9 percent, according to Pollster.com's analysis. And Etheridge has 34.7 percent to 43.3 percent for Burr.

Cunningham won't run for U.S. Senate

mbieseck — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:02:35 -0500

Cal Cunningham, a Lexington Democrat who had been exploring a U.S. Senate bid for months, said late Monday that he will not run.

The decision is a possible indicator the U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge will seek the Democratic nomination to challenge Sen. Richard Burr in 2010. Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis have already announced they are in the primary.

In a post sent to a Facebook group organized to help build support for a potential campaign, a message from Cunningham, a lawyer and former member of the N.C. Senate, said it would be the wrong race at the wrong time for his family.

Dear Friends,

After giving a serious and thorough look at a race for the U.S. Senate, I have decided not to seek office at this time.

This has been a very difficult decision, but I’m sure there will be another day and there are many other ways to serve. I am deeply committed to public service and have a passion for working on the serious issues facing our State and country.

A campaign for the Senate is about winning and working to be a part of the answer. As a candidate, I have to look supporters in the eye and show them how we win — and what we do when we get there.

After a very careful look, I’ve concluded that this is the wrong race at the wrong time for me and my family.

Burr tops Marshall by 10

markjohnson — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 06:28:00 -0500

U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, a Republican, is ahead of Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, one of his potential Democratic opponents, by ten points, according to a poll by the conservative Civitas Institute.

Among those surveyed, 43.7 percent backed Burr, while 33 percent picked Marshall.

The poll, released Friday, surveyed 600 voters by live interviews on October 20 and 21 and has a margin of error of 4 percent.

Marshall and Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis have declared their candidacy for the Democratic nomination to challenge Burr next year. Former state Sen. Cal Cunningham is considering a run.