When voters consider a face-off between the two, Republican Governor Tim Pawlenty just nudges past his strongest rival and frequent thorn-in-side, DFL Attorney General Mike Hatch. The latest Rasmussen Reports election poll finds Pawlenty leading Hatch 47% to 44%.
In the scramble to take over the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by retiring Democratic Senator Mark Dayton, likely Republican nominee Representative Mark Kennedy is neck-and-neck with DFL county attorney Amy Klobuchar. (The Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party or DFL is the state's equivalent of the Democratic Party).
Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman (D) faces grumbling and discontent from the left wing of his own party about his position on Iraq.
Matched against Republican Congressman Bob Beauprez, Hickenlooper leads 43% to 38% in our survey of 500 likely voters. Matched against University of Denver President Marc Holtzman, Hickenlooper leads more comfortably, 46% to 36%.
The first Rasmussen Reports Kansas poll of 2006 shows the incumbent Governor, Kathleen Sebelius (D), leading former state House Speaker Robin Jennison (R) 46% to 32%. Sebelius also leads state Senator Jim Barnett (R) 46% to 35%.
In the race to be New Jersey's next U.S. Senator, Republican state Senator Tom Kean Jr. now leads appointed Democratic Senator Robert Menendez 42% to 35%. Kean is son of a popular former governor.
In a match-up with State Treasurer Phil Angelides, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger leads Angelides 41% to 39%. Matched with State Comptroller Steve Westly, Schwarzenegger trails 39% to 40%.
The Democratic governor of Michigan may have the advantage of incumbency but, burdened by the state's lackluster employment outlook, has yet to win support from more than 50% of likely voters in a match-up with her likely Republican opponent.
Senator Debbie Stabenow enjoys a healthy 20-28 percentage point edge against the three Republicans vying to challenge her in the general election.
Our latest poll of the race for Pennsylvania governor shows Republican Lynn Swann, the former receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers, narrowly leading Democratic Governor Ed Rendell 45% to 43%.
Blunt-talking Republican Senator Rick Santorum continues to trail his likely Democratic opponent, Bob Casey, Jr. in the closely watched race over his Senate seat. The latest Rasmussen Reports election poll shows Casey leading by 15 percentage points, 53% to 38%.
Democrat Mike Beebe is maintaining a narrow lead, 46% to 40%, over Republican Asa Hutchinson in the race to succeed Governor Mike Huckabee.
Virginia Senator George Allen (R) leads Northern Virginia businessman Harris Miller (D) by 30 percentage points in his bid for re-election.
The seesaw in Maryland's Senate race is echoed in the race for Governor. As in the Senate campaign, support for Democratic candidates bulged in November during a politically rough time for Republicans nationally, but has now slackened.
Maryland is proving to be another state to watch in an election year many have predicted will see nationwide gains for Democrats.
The race to succeed Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack remains one to watch. Congressman Jim Nussle, the likely Republican nominee, captures at best 42% of the vote against any one of four possible Democratic opponents.
Republican Senator Conrad Burns has lost a double-digit lead against the two Democrats most prominently vying for the right to square off against him in November.
Rhode Island Senator Lincoln Chafee (R) does not break through the 50% level of voter support when matched against two potential challengers in a Rasmussen Reports Election Poll.
Vermont Governor Jim Douglas has a 23-percentage point lead in his bid for re-election. The latest Rasmussen Reports election poll shows Douglas earning 54% of the vote while former state Senator Scudder Parker attracts 31%.
For a while, Kay Bailey Hutchison flirted with the idea of challenging Texas Governor Rick Perry in a Republican Primary battle that had the potential to be nasty intra-party fight.
