Tuesday Must-Reads: Turning Blue

Voters in New Jersey head to the polls today to pick their gubernatorial match-up. Incumbent Democrat Jon Corzine is unlikely to be picked off, and the real question is who will be running against him. Former U.S. Attorney Chris Christie is the odds-on favorite, but keep your eye on whether he matches his poll numbers. Next week, Republicans will learn who will face their Virginia candidate, Bob McDonnell. The latest Northern Virginia polling is here. But as Republicans are hoping for gains in Jersey and Virginia, Democrats are moving south. DNC Chair Tim Kaine announced that the committee’s fall meeting will be held in Austin, and now some are wondering if the long-time red state could start to tinge blue. A key reason why Democrats are still eyeing gains is demographics. New polling shows that the GOP’s base is overwhelmingly white while the country is becoming increasingly diverse; Texas has a growing Hispanic population. Not all is rosy for Dems, though—at least on a relative scale. With a popular Democratic president in place, their fundraising should be soaring, but it’s only slightly higher than Republicans’. A group of conservatives has sent a letter asking Republicans to filibuster Sonia Sotomayer’s Supreme Court confirmation. They may lack the numbers they need, but however that battle turns out, expect health care to start grabbing headlines as the next big congressional battle. Norm Coleman’s return to the Senate is looking more unlikely by the day; the Minnesota Supreme Court justices sounded skeptical of his arguments yesterday. So maybe the 2008 election season will finally end—though it will soon be rehashed in book form. “Renegade,” by former Newsweek writer Richard Wolffe, will be out this week and tells the story of Obama’s win. Politico has scoured the book for some interesting tidbits.