Barbara Boxer Gains Momentum in Polls but Snubbed by San Francisco Newspaper
Another poll this week shows that Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer now stands on more solid footing against her Republican challenger Carly Fiorina, but at the same time a major San Francisco newspaper snubbed Boxer in its editorial pages, giving voice to voters who remain dissatisfied with what the leaders in their state have accomplished.
Boxer, who is seeking a fourth term in the Senate, leads the former Hewlett-Packard CEO by 51 percent to 43 percent among likely voters in a poll released Sunday by the Los Angeles Times and the University of Southern California.
The poll comes a week after both a Field Poll and a Survey USA poll showed Boxer leading with a 6-point margin.
Boxer has aggressively attacked Fiorina's record as HP's chief executive in her campaign ads, and the L.A. Times poll shows that more likely California voters have a negative perception of Fiorina than have a positive perception.
Yet while the L.A. Times poll suggests voters prefer Boxer, the San Francisco Chronicle today published a harsh op-ed, declaring it could endorse neither candidate. The newspaper said it was "extremely rare" for its editorial page to offer no recommendation to voters, but it called this race a "necessary exception."
"Californians are left with a deeply unsatisfying choice for the U.S. Senate this year," the op-ed says. "The incumbent, Democrat Barbara Boxer, has failed to distinguish herself during her 18 years in office... The challenger, Republican Carly Fiorina, has campaigned with a vigor and directness that suggests she could be effective in Washington - but for an agenda that would undermine this nation's need to move forward on addressing serious issues such as climate change, health care and immigration."
The newspaper made clear that it would have preferred to back Boxer, had she lived up to expectations: "It is a dismal choice between an ineffective advocate for causes we generally support and a potentially strong advocate for positions we oppose," the op-ed said.
As the newspaper suggests, Californians are dissatisfied with leadership in their state. As many as 86 percent of likely voters said in the L.A. Times poll said California is on the wrong track.
Still, other statistics in the poll show that Boxer could maintain an edge simply because of the state's liberal make up. As many as 56 percent of likely voters said they wanted a senator who would support President Obama, while just 34 percent said they wanted a senator who would be an opponent to the president.
Boxer also maintained a 38-point lead over Fiorina among registered Latino voters a voting bloc with growing clout in California.
Conservative Latinos have yet to cede the race, however. The Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles today kicked off a 42-city bus tour of California to encourage Latinos to support Fiorina. The tour will feature rallies in Los Angeles and San Diego and will coincide with a series of three ads airing on Spanish-language radio starting today.
Critical Contests: Interactive Map with CBS News' Election 2010 Race Ratings
