For Whom the Bell Polls

For Whom the Bell Polls - A Star-Tribune Poll released yesterday showed a major shift in the gubernatorial and senate races.

First, the great news for Tim Pawlenty - he's up by four points. Yes, this is the same poll that showed Skip Humphrey as the winner four years ago - but Tim Penny is no Jesse Ventura.

Read this quote, and tell me who's been saying this all along:

Pawlenty's strength comes from several factors. He is stronger among Republicans than Moe is among DFLers, and stronger among conservatives than Moe is among liberals. Pawlenty also wins among self-described independents. And he probably loses fewer votes to the Green Party's Ken Pentel than do Moe and Penny.

It might just be that the message is getting out - Tim Penny's no Jesse Ventura. He's a wonk. He's the type of guy who loves going to zoning meetings. The IP is DFL Lite. It's not a choice.

In the meantime, the poll shows Mondale leading Norm Coleman by 8 points, 47-39. But the poll was taken before the furor over the Wellstone "memorial" last night. There are so many ways this could trip Mondale up - and the poll wouldn't have gotten any of them. Coleman's got a chance.

Five more days.

Posted by Mitch at October 30, 2002 09:26 PM