PA: Rendell widens lead over Swann in 2 polls

[sugapablo]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06305/734630-100.stm

HARRISBURG, Pa. --- Gov. Ed Rendell's already huge lead over Republican Lynn Swann widened in October, according to a pair of independent polls released today.

The Democratic incumbent led by 23 percentage points in a Quinnipiac University poll of 933 Pennsylvania voters who said they are likely to cast ballots in Tuesday's election. Mr. Rendell was favored by 58 percent, compared with 35 percent for Swann, the Pro Football Hall-of-Famer who played for the Steelers. In a similar poll in September, Rendell led with 55 percent to Swann's 39 percent.

"Pennsylvania voters seem well on their way to re-electing their popular governor," said Clay F. Richards, assistant director of the Connecticut-based university's polling institute. "Lynn Swann sounded like an all-star choice when he was picked, but he soon dropped the ball and never recovered."

The Quinnpiac poll was conducted by telephone between Oct. 23 and 29. The sampling error margin was plus or minus 3 percentage points.

[gratuitous]

1. How do Rendell's coattails look?

Are other Pennsylvania Democrats likely to benefit from a blowout victory by Rendell?

[Marnieworld]

2. Thank God!

I don't want to live in PA with a governor Swann. He is a total idiot. Unqualified talkingpoint Bushbot.

[NorthernSpy]

3. once again, black voters turning thumbs-down on black Republican candidate...

http://www.blackamericaweb.com/site.aspx/bawnews/swann410

Swann may actually do significantly worse on Election Day than the current polls would suggest, because of the white-flight-at-the-ballot-box phenomenon (a significant percentage of white voters who claim to support a black candidate actually vote for the white opponent instead -- even if they must cross party lines to do so).

[zbdent]

4. In a trip back to "native" PA, I noticed very few Swann signs

or other republican signs ... for the most part, the signs I saw were placed on areas that nobody would claim as their "property". You know, on/off ramps to highways, vacant lots, businesses/housing developments where nobody really can be blamed ...

I saw more pro-Dem signs in peoples' yards ... Rendell, Casey, etc. By association, I picked up other Dem names of more local candidates.

I don't know if that's really going to reflect the turnout and the final result, but it looks promising ... especially since the areas I visited in 2004 were liberally dotted with Bush/Cheney04 signs, with the rare, endangered species "Kerry" signs.

(not my original quote, but) But if the number of signs is a real indication, I think that Howard Hannah has a lock. I saw his signs not only in PA but my (for the time being) adopted Ohio ...

[Eurobabe]

5. I saw qiute a few in diehard West Chester, PA

REPUBE-LAND last month. Whether they were legitimately on someone's lawn and they support him or just stuck at convenient crossroads, who knows?