Landrieu looks strong

• By WILL SENTELL
• Advocate Capitol News Bureau
• Published: Oct 12, 2008 - UPDATED: 12:00 a.m.

• Print
• Email
• Save
• Share

• Del.icio.us
• Digg
• Facebook
• Reddit
• 

Despite longtime claims that she would be vulnerable this fall, Democratic U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu seems to be well positioned to defeat Republican challenger John Kennedy on Nov. 4, several political analysts and politicians say.

Pollsters, politicians from both parties and political analysts at several universities generally agree that with about three weeks left in the campaign, Kennedy needs a huge change in the political landscape to derail Landrieu’s bid for a third term.

“He needs a game-changer at this point,” said Pearson Cross, chairman of the political science department at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

Kennedy and Landrieu meet in their second of four debates   at 7 p.m. today. The hour-long session will take place at LSU and be broadcast statewide by Louisiana Public Broadcasting.

The contest is already notable for its barrage of charges in  television and radio ads.

Landrieu portrays Kennedy as a political flip-flopper who cannot settle on his philosophy. Kennedy contends Landrieu is the most liberal senator in Louisiana history and part of a broken, ineffective political system in Washington D.C.

“Everyone’s got a gutful, and that thing has hardly gotten under way,” state Sen. Robert Adley, R-Benton, said of the back-and-forth.

Before the campaign, national Republicans targeted Landrieu as beatable, especially after Hurricane Katrina drove so many black residents out of New Orleans, eroding much of her voting base.

But experts now say the race is clearly Landrieu’s to lose because:

• She is reaping political goodwill for her active roles in landing federal hurricane relief and dollars to fight coastal erosion.
• She is expected to outspend Kennedy by $11 million to about $5.5 million.
• Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama will help boost black votes for Landrieu.

Kennedy, who is state treasurer, concedes that he faces an uphill battle.

“She is an incumbent, I am the underdog,” Kennedy said. “I have never doubted that. But I have also been around politics long enough to know that four weeks out is a long time and the way things generally turn out is generally not the way they were four weeks previously.”

William Arp, a professor of political science at Southern University, notes Landrieu has sharply criticized Kennedy in TV ads that depict him as a confused, ever-changing politician.

Kennedy switched from Democrat to Republican last year.

Bernie Pinsonat, a Baton Rouge pollster, said he thinks Landrieu enjoys a double-digit lead over Kennedy with less than a month to go.