If you look at the Real Clear Politics average of polls, Democrat Patty Murray has an 8.5 point lead in the Washington State senate race.
And yet Democrats are pouring millions of dollars into this race, in a mad dash to defend Murray from a potential upset. They should not have to defend this seat.
Politico reports:
Democrats scramble to avert shock Senate loss in Washington stateDemocrats are adding millions in television spending to boost Sen. Patty Murray, a sign that the party is employing a take-no-chances approach even in solidly blue Washington state.The 30-year veteran of the Senate is facing a challenge from Republican Tiffany Smiley, a political newcomer whose campaign has seized on quality-of-life issues, from urban crime and homelessness to inflation, to tarnish Murray. In recent public polling, Smiley has closed a sizable gap since this summer, when Murray led by 18 percentage points in an 18-candidate, all-party primary.A Seattle Times poll released last week showed Murray slipping slightly, from 51 percent in a July survey to 49 percent now, with Smiley’s support increasing from 33 percent this summer to 41 percent now. The poll also finds that Smiley has improved with independents in the state, capturing 50 percent of their support to Murray’s 34 percent.The national political environment currently favors Republicans in the midterms, and the fact that Democrats are spending to shore up an incumbent in a solidly blue state is not a good sign for them.
You have to give Smiley some credit. Who even thought Washington State was in play for a Republican? Smiley is ignoring the polls and is working hard to close the deal with voters.
The Seattle Times reports:
Tiffany Smiley tells Maple Valley crowd it’s time to ‘retire’ MurrayRepublican challenger Tiffany Smiley told a raucous crowd in Maple Valley on Tuesday that it’s time to “retire” U.S. Sen. Patty Murray.“There’s a new mom in town,” said Smiley, playing off Murray’s “mom in tennis shoes” campaign motto when Murray first won her Senate seat in 1992.Smiley, launching what her campaign calls a statewide bus tour in advance of the Nov. 8 election, made her first stop Tuesday night at a Maple Valley tavern where she spoke to 250 to 300 people, the event mainly focused on taking jabs at Democrats in power. The tour will make 46 stops in 28 counties across the state where Smiley plans to share her “message of hope and recovery,” according to her campaign.Smiley, 41, was joined at the Red Dog Saloon by Iowa Republican Sen. Joni Ernst, a former military officer. Smiley’s husband, also a veteran, was left blind by a suicide bomber 17 years ago when he was serving in Iraq.Smiley, who was joined onstage Tuesday by her husband, Scotty, recounted how she became interested in politics when she became his full-time caregiver and advocate. She became emotional when she spoke of his support throughout the campaign.
A poll from Kellyanne Conway finds this is still a close race.
If Smiley pulls this off it would be a seismic shift in politics.
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