According to conservative columnist Robert Novak, Virginia's neighbor Kentucky appears to be moving in a "blue" direction:
Kentucky Governor: Republicans may now be regretting their decision to renominate Gov. Ernie Fletcher (R), as his campaign looks to be in dire straits. Fletcher consistently trails in polls by more than 15 percent, and his job approval in a recent poll was at 37 percent.Fletcher's ethical problems (he was indicted for illegal hiring practices, and he pardoned nine of his indicted staffers) have demolished his public image, and he's not getting much help from his party or his business base, either. Since coming to Lexington in the 2003 election, Fletcher has not gotten along well with Republican lawmakers or with the party's political operatives-hence the spirited primary challenge from former Rep. Anne Northup (R). By defeating Northup handily in the primary, Fletcher showed he still is popular among the GOP electorate, but few of his erstwhile rivals have rallied behind him the general election. One Northup backer told the Kentucky media, "It would seem the election is merely a formality at this point."
This prospective gubernatorial blowout causes some concern among the commonwealth's Republicans looking ahead to the defense of U.S. Senate seats in 2008 and 2010. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R) is on the Democrats' hit list in 2008, and Sen. Jim Bunning (R), who barely won in 2004, would be vulnerable in 2010 if he decided to run again. Physician Daniel Mongiardo (D), Bunning's 2004 opponent, is Beshear's running mate and will likely be the lieutenant governor in 2010.
Kentucky is another in a long list of states for the GOP to worry about, and this governor race punctuates that point. Likely Democratic Takeover.
This is sounding more and more familiar every day, as people realize what a complete failure the Bush Administration and Republican Congress (2001-2006) have been. My only question is, "why did it take so long?"