Wisconsin: Pocan and Roys Launch First Major TV Ads

Wisconsin Democratic Assembly members Mark Pocan and Kelda Helen Roys launched their first major TV ads this week in the race to succeed Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D) in the state’s 2nd district. The spots for both candidates are positive portrayals of themselves and both avoid taking on their opponent directly.

Pocan’s ad, which is part of a more than $55,000 broadcast and cable buy, portrays the him as someone whose political leadership has been influenced by his own experience with business.

“My parents taught me how to run a business and how to treat employees and customer fairly,” Pocan says in the ad. “I practice those lessons everyday in my own union print shop.”

Roys released two ads that will play in rotation on broadcast and cable portraying her as willing to stand up to the establishment. The value of the Roys ad buy is roughly equal to the Pocan buy, according to a Wisconsin Democratic operative with knowledge of the campaigns. Full story

Arizona: Jeff Flake Slams Wil Cardon on Report of Hiring Illegal Immigrants

Rep. Jeff Flake launched a new television advertisement today accusing his Senate Republican primary opponent, businessman Wil Cardon, of employing illegal immigrants at his business.

The ad, part of a $200,000 statewide broadcast and cable television buy, follows similar allegations published in a report in the Arizona Republic last week. Immigration has been a prominent issue in Arizona’s GOP Senate primary, with Cardon frequently accusing Flake of supporting “amnesty.”

“Wil Cardon talks tough about illegal immigration,” the narrator says. “But federal agents say nearly two-thirds of Wil Cardon’s sandwich shop employees were illegal aliens.”

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Wisconsin: EMILY’s List Takes On Senate Frontrunners

Women Vote!, the independent expenditure arm of EMILY’s List, released its first television ad in Wisconsin this cycle in support of Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) with a $400,000 broadcast television buy.

The ad, which will air in Milwaukee, Green Bay and Wausau, targets GOP Senate candidates businessman Eric Hovde and former Gov. Tommy Thompson.

“D.C. insiders like Tommy Thompson and Eric Hovde are not going to stick up for me,”  the ad’s first subject says.

The ad continues by portraying the GOP candidates as out of touch with Wisconsin before praising Baldwin as someone who “won’t give the state away to special interests.”

The choice to take on both Thompson and Hovde underscores the changing dynamic in the GOP primary. The two candidates are quickly emerging as the race’s frontrunners. Full story

Michigan: Special Election for Thaddeus McCotter’s Seat Up in Air

Gov. Rick Snyder (R) kept his fellow Michigan Republicans waiting Monday for word on whether he’d call a special election in the newly vacant 11th district.

The governor’s office will continue to review the Wolverine State’s election law before making a decision, according to his spokeswoman.

The 11th district is vacant following Rep. Thaddeus McCotter’s (R) resignation Friday. The quirky Congressman’s move further complicates an already unique race to replace him. Full story

Washington: MoveOn.org Backs Darcy Burner

MoveOn.org endorsed Democrat Darcy Burner on Monday for the open 1st district.

Of the approximately 19,000 members of the progressive grass-roots organization who live in the district, the more than half who participated in the endorsement vote chose Burner, a longtime liberal favorite.

The all-party primary is Aug. 7, and Burner is one of five Democrats running for the seat of former Rep. Jay Inslee (D). John Koster (R) and Larry Ishmael (I) are also running. The redrawn 1st is the most competitive district in the state, and one Democrat is likely to advance along with Koster. A few other candidates are running only in the coinciding special election to fill the final two months of Inslee’s term.

A week ago, the Service Employees International Union endorsed Suzan DelBene (D) for the seat. Gov. Christine Gregoire and Rep. Rick Larsen are also backing DelBene, who lost to Rep. Dave Reichert (R) in the 8th district in 2010. Burner lost to Reichert in 2006 and 2008, and Koster lost to Larsen in the 2nd district in 2000 and 2010.

Texas: Republican State Legislators Come Out Against Ted Cruz

Updated, 6:09 p.m. The Texas Republican establishment on Sunday came out hard against former state Solicitor General Ted Cruz (R) in his upstart Senate bid.

Nearly every state Senator signed an open letter addressed to “Fellow Texans” that offered a defense of Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, who is running against Cruz in a July 31 GOP primary runoff to replace retiring Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R).

The letter never once mentions Cruz by name. But it makes clear the state Senators’ displeasure with statements he has made on sanctuary cities, state spending, the state’s Transportation Security Administration “Anti-Groping” bill and a state income tax.

Full story

Texas: Ted Cruz Internal Poll Shows Lead Over David Dewhurst

Ted Cruz (above) led Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst in a recent internal poll. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Ted Cruz led Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst by 9 points in a recent internal poll conducted for the former Texas solicitor general’s campaign, a Cruz source has confirmed.

From the earliest days of the race to replace retiring Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R), Dewhurst has been the frontrunner. But in this survey, 49 percent of respondents said they would vote for Cruz. Forty percent supported Dewhurst, and 11 percent were undecided.

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Connecticut: Internal Investigation Clears Chris Donovan

Updated, 4:26 p.m. | An internal investigation released today shows that Connecticut House Speaker Chris Donovan (D) “had no knowledge of illegal contributions to his campaign,” according to the Hartford Courant.

A quid pro quo scandal involving tobacco legislation and campaign donations has rocked the Donovan campaign for the past month. An FBI sting resulted in the arrest of Donovan’s finance director and the termination of two other staffers.

Donovan’s political opponents from both parties were highly critical of the report, conducted by former U.S. Attorney Stanley Twardy. Per the Courant, Twardy lacked subpoena power and attorneys prevented interviews with central figures in the investigation.

Full story

Wisconsin: Eric Hovde Poll Shows Narrowing Senate Primary Field

A new poll for businessman Eric Hovde showed the Wisconsin Senate GOP primary to basically be a two-way race. (Douglas Graham/CQ Roll Call)

Former Gov. Tommy Thompson and businessman Eric Hovde are locked in a close two-way race for the GOP Senate nomination in Wisconsin, according to an internal poll conducted for the Hovde campaign by polling firm On Message Inc.

The poll showed Thompson and Hovde at the top of the primary field, receiving support from 34 percent and 29 percent of likely Republican voters, respectively. Former Rep. Mark Neumann received support from 16 percent of respondents while Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald did not crack the 10 percent mark. Full story

Texas: Michael Burgess Backs Ted Cruz for Senate

Rep. Michael Burgess made an endorsement in the Texas Senate runoff today even though most Members are sitting on the sidelines. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas) announced today that he is backing former Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz in the GOP Senate runoff to replace retiring Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R).

“Ted Cruz is that strong, proven conservative leader, a constitutional scholar, and a fighter through and through,” Burgess said in a press release. “He’ll lead the fight to stop the Obama agenda, and I look forward to fighting alongside Ted to repeal every word of ObamaCare.”

Cruz is engaged in an increasingly tough runoff campaign with Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst. The winner of that July 31 race will almost certainly become the Lone Star State’s next Senator. Full story

Wisconsin: Pat Toomey Endorses Mark Neumann for Senate

Sen. Pat Toomey (above) endorsed for Rep. Mark Neumann, who is seeking Wisconsin's open Senate seat. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) endorsed former Rep. Mark Neumann (R-Wis.) today in his campaign for Wisconsin’s open Senate seat. Toomey is the fifth GOP Senator from the party’s more conservative wing to endorse Neumann.

“Congressman Mark Neumann is a man of courage and principle, and I am proud to endorse him in his run for the U.S. Senate,” Toomey said in a press release. “In this era of skyrocketing deficits and stagnant economic growth, Mark is exactly the kind of leader we need in Washington.”

Neumann, who is locked in a tight primary race against three GOP competitors, is thought to have the most conservative record of the Republican candidates. He has been endorsed by conservative activists groups such as the Club for Growth and the Senate Conservatives Fund in addition to getting the backing of Republican Sens. Jim DeMint (S.C.), Mike Lee (Utah) and Rand Paul (Ky.).

Despite the high profile endorsements, Neumann trails former Gov. Tommy Thompson by a substantial margin in recent polls. The winner of the Aug. 14 GOP primary will face presumptive Democratic nominee Rep. Tammy Baldwin (Wis.) in the November general election.

Conservatives, meantime, took aim at Thompson over the health care law.

Full story

Crossroads Launches TV Ads In North Dakota, New Mexico

American Crossroads and its nonprofit affiliate, Crossroads GPS, today launched new television ads targeting competitive Senate races in New Mexico and North Dakota.

American Crossroads, a GOP-aligned super PAC, went up with its second ad in New Mexico on behalf of former Rep. Heather Wilson (R), who is facing Rep. Martin Heinrich (D) in the race for the open Senate seat. The group spent $184,000 on the ad — its second to air this month — which airs statewide on broadcast and cable from today through July 7. Full story

New Mexico: Enviro Groups Launch New Ad Against Heather Wilson

The League of Conservation Voters and Defenders of Wildlife Action Committee launched a new round of television advertising in New Mexico against Republican Senate nominee Heather Wilson.

The former Congresswoman, who is running for the open Senate seat against Rep. Martin Heinrich (D), has been the target of a coalition effort from several environmental and conservation groups in recent weeks. The two groups responsible for the latest ad have already spent $700,000 in independent expenditures on the race this month, according to Federal Election Commission records.

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Virginia: Former Gov. Linwood Holton Lends Name for Tim Kaine

(Douglas Graham/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Democratic Senate candidate Tim Kaine distributed a fundraising appeal Monday from former Gov. Linwood Holton (R).

As the subject line states, Kaine is Holton’s son-in-law. But Holton, who was governor in the early 1970s, says he is backing Kaine because “we need people who will roll up their sleeves and focus on getting things done instead of fighting over everything all the time.”

Kaine is running against fellow former Gov. George Allen (R) in a race Roll Call rates as a Tossup.

“Tim is a great leader and a great guy — and he also happens to be married to my daughter Anne!” Holton says in the email, which asks for a contribution of $5 or more before Saturday’s fundraising deadline.

Arizona: Trent Franks and Club for Growth Engage Over Arizona Senate Race

The Club for Growth and Rep. Trent Franks (R) are currently engaged in a proxy war over the Arizona Senate GOP primary.

Franks has endorsed real estate investor Wil Cardon, while the club is backing Rep. Jeff Flake in the GOP race to succeed retiring Sen. Jon Kyl (R).

Franks appeared in a new Cardon television ad calling a recent ad from the club “absolutely false.”

The club responded swiftly.

“The facts in our ads are entirely accurate: Wil Cardon did support a massive tax increase, and Cardon is a leading member of a liberal organization that wants to raise gas taxes and backs a cap-and-trade energy scheme,” Club for Growth Communications Director Barney Keller wrote in a statement. “Trent Franks is a good man and it’s a shame that he is allowing his personal bitterness at the Club for Growth PAC’s support of Jeff Flake over him in the U.S. Senate race to cloud his judgment about liberal Wil Cardon.”

At issue is Proposition 400, a 2004 extension of a half-cent transportation sales tax in Maricopa County. A spokeswoman in the Cardon camp told Roll Call that Cardon does not support tax increases from Capitol Hill but does support voters’ right to approve such action via referendum.

Roll Call rates this race as Leans Republican. Former Surgeon General Dr. Richard Carmona is the presumptive Democratic nominee.