Fred Thompson’s in, and leading the South

Fred Thompson’s officially in the GOP primary race for President, now, and so far, he’s the clear leader in the heavily Republican South.

Alabama: Thompson 31%, Giuliani 26%, McCain 16%, Gingrich 8%, Romney 3%, Undecided 13% (ARG 7/30-8/2 MOE +/-4%)
Georgia: Thompson 27%, Giuliani 20%, Romney 14%, Gingrich 13%, McCain 7%, Huckabee 3%, Brownback 2%, Paul 2%, Undecided 12% (ARG 8/2-8/6 MOE +/-4%)
Kentucky: Not polled. Borders Tennessee.
Louisiana: Not polled.
Mississippi: Not polled.
North Carolina: Thompson 30%, Giuliani 20%, Romney 12%, McCain 7%, Other 7%, Undecided 23% (PPP (D) 8/1-8/2 MOE +/-4%)
South Carolina: Rudy Giuliani 26%, Fred Thompson 21%, John McCain 12%, Mike Huckabee 9%, Mitt Romney 9%, Newt Gingrich 6%, Sam Brownback 2%, Ron Paul 2%, Undecided 12% (ARG 8/26-8/28 MOE +/-4%) – Note: 3 other polls in August (PPP, Rasmussen, Clemson U) have Thompson leading by 1-4%
Tennessee: Fred Thompson 45%, Rudy Giuliani 15%, Newt Gingrich 11%, John McCain 10% (InsiderAdvantage 3/31-4/1)
Texas: Fred Thompson 25%, Rudy Giuliani 21%, Mitt Romney 15%, Mike Huckabee 13%, John McCain 8%, Ron Paul 5%, Other 8%, Undecided 5% (IVR 8/29 MOE 4.1%) – Note: Past Primary Voters polled
Virginia: Only poll was in February, and Thompson wasn’t even an option.
Arkansas: Only poll was in March, with Huckabee having a massive lead.

Florida, of course, is very different from the rest of the South – latest numbers there (Rasmussen) are Rudy Giuliani 30%, Fred Thompson 17%, Mitt Romney 15%, John McCain 7%, Mike Huckabee 5%.

So far, it looks like Thompson has a well-defined Dixie powerbase, comparable to Romney’s popularity in the Mormon Mountain States (UT, ID, NV, and the unpolled WY) but much larger (Romney also holds IA, NH, and MI so far). Giuliani, however, still holds a massive lead in the Big Blue states (NY, CA, IL, NJ, PA) and swing states like FL, OH, MO, NM, CO, OR, WI, and WA.

By what margin will Bob Shamansky win?

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TN State Senate: Kurita Stabs Democrats in the Back

(Bumped. – promoted by James L.)

Do you remember Rosalind Kurita, a Tennessee State Senator from Clarksville?  Back in 2005, she challenged Harold Ford, Jr. for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate seat held by the retiring Sen. Bill Frist before dropping out due to anemic fundraising.  I seem to recall that one of the arguments in favor of her candidacy in a few pockets of the netroots was that she was somehow a more “progressive” choice than Ford.  Here’s that “progressivism” in action:

John Wilder’s three decades as lieutenant governor came to an end today – as did Democrats’ 140-year leadership over the Tennessee state Senate.

A last-minute switch by a Democratic senator from Clarksville allowed Wilder to be bested by his Republican rival, state Sen. Majority Leader Ron Ramsey.

An auctioneer from Blountville, Ramsey was elected Senate speaker and lieutenant governor around 12:45 p.m. today in an 18-15 vote.

Wilder had held the post since the early 1970s – but Ramsey defeated him after state Sen. Rosalind Kurita of Clarksville defected from her fellow Democrats and voted with the Republicans for Ramsey. (emphasis added)

The Senate exploded with applause at the last-minute switch.

To clarify the situation, in Tennessee, the Speaker of the Senate also serves as the state’s Lt. Governor.  While the Republicans have enjoyed a 17-16 majority in the TN Senate since 2004, Democrat John Wilder, an 85 year-old living legend, has been able to retain his job as Speaker by relying on the votes of several Republican members.  With those votes gone as a result of a Republican crackdown, and with Sen. Kurita ready and willing to stab her party in the back, Republicans have just claimed control of the State Senate for the first time in 140 years.

With that kind of party loyalty, thank goodness that she wasn’t the one to get a crack at a Senate seat last year.

UPDATE: In the comments below, Knox Dem JJ puts to rest the idea that Kurita’s defection was merely a moot vote:

Kurita’s vote did indeed matter, it’s that simple. Even though the vote was 18-15, she voted ahead of Republican Sen. Williams who broke ranks with Senate Republicans two years ago to help elect Sen. Wilder as Speaker of the Senate/Lt. Governor. When she voted ahead of Williams this year he realized even if he voted for Wilder again, Republican Sen. Ramsey would be elected so when his vote came up he voted to appease his party even though they have vowed to primary him. Sen. Speaker Wilder had said that Williams had told him face to face that he would support him again but with Kurita’s vote going republican William’s vote became moot.

(Hat-tip to Chris Bowers and MyDD’s Breaking Blue)