Election 2006,  Politics

Senator Joe Lieberman Watch: Independent Candidacy this Fall?

June 14, 2006 /

Ned Lamont, Sen. Joe Lieberman

ASSociated Press: Lieberman weighs re-election bid options

Democratic Sen. Joe Lieberman, warily watching his primary challenger advance in the polls, must soon decide whether to start collecting signatures for a possible independent bid this November.

Lieberman’s campaign contends that it’s focused only on winning the Aug. 8 primary, but the Democrat has not ruled out petitioning his way onto the November ballot as part of a backup plan to secure a fourth term in the Senate.

“I am not going to close out any options,” the senator recently told reporters.

Lieberman’s spokeswoman, Marion Steinfels, said he is “already the party’s endorsed candidate and on Aug. 8 he will win the primary, the Democratic primary.”

Lieberman has until Aug. 9 — the day after the Democratic primary — to collect 7,500 signatures from registered voters to gain a spot on the ballot as an unaffiliated candidate.

But any effort to gather signatures before the primary would be a sign of weakness, indicating that Lieberman, the Democratic vice presidential nominee in 2000, fears that he could lose to businessman Ned Lamont. The effort also would rile Democrats who already question Lieberman’s party loyalty and his perceived closeness to
President Bush.

Forget about it Senator.

The LEFTY Dimrats in your state want a KOS KID Lefty not an independent Senator but voters will see through this sham.
However, maybe with Ned Lamont, the GOP could pick up the seat……

Nahhhhhhhh

According to a recent Quinnipiac University Poll, 57 percent of registered Democrats in Connecticut said they would vote for Lieberman, compared to 32 percent for Lamont. A month ago, Lieberman drew 65 percent to Lamont’s 19 percent.

The poll found that if Lieberman runs as an independent, he would win with 56 percent of the vote, compared to 18 percent for Lamont and 8 percent for Republican Alan Schlesinger. Lieberman enjoys higher ratings among Republicans and unaffiliated voters than Democrats, the poll found. Unaffiliated voters are the state’s largest bloc of voters, followed by Democrats and then Republicans.

Flap handicaps a Lieberman win but it will be a nasty primary race. A portent for Hillary?

Stay tuned…….

Markos Moulitsas “Screw Them” Zuniga and Lamont in Hartford.

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