Press Room

D.C. paper claims Kelly's not a guaranteed shoo-in

The Christian Science Monitor, May 1, 2006

If you're wondering whether to invest in a company, check out its bond rating. If you're wondering whether to invest in an incumbent member of Congress, check out Congressional Quarterly.

The weekly Washington-centric newspaper downgraded U.S. Rep. Sue Kelly's political credit rating last week.

It was just a slight slip. The Katonah Republican's election year prospects were downgraded from "safe" (the publication's best rating) to "favored" (one rung down). Still, it was enough to send local Democrats cheering with glee.

Why the change? Aside from the Republican-controlled Congress' poor public approval rating, CQ cited activity by the anti-Kelly blog Take19 and strong fundraising by her leading Democratic opponent, Judy Aydelott.

Kelly's still got a lot going in her favor. Namely, she has a strong Republican district where she carried 67 percent of the vote in 2004.

Inching ahead

Aydelott took great satisfaction from campaign financial disclosure reports filed earlier this month that showed her principal Democratic rival, John Hall, trailing far behind her in the fundraising race.

To make the singer-songwriter's turnout look even worse, he had failed to wrest second place from 29-year-old upstart Ben Shuldiner. As of March 31, Hall had raised $145,125, compared with Shuldiner's $159,044.

Well, Ha! says Hall.

He has filed an amended fundraising report that shows he actually raised $156,100 in that period. Not only does that cut Shuldiner's lead, it means that Hall, whose campaign got a late start, has outpaced all but Aydelott's in fundraising in the last two quarters.

A total of six Democrats are seeking the party's nomination to run against Kelly.