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==U.S. Senate campaign==
 
==U.S. Senate campaign==
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Democrats had been favored to keep this Senate seat, and are in a state of shock as the Democratic candidate [[Martha Coakley]] has lost her 30 point lead and trails Republican [[Scott Brown]] by a few points in the latest polls. Coakley, a party insider, has proven to be an ineffective candidate who is unable to reach independents. Brown is a much better campaigner, and leads 2-1 among independents, who will elect him if they turn out and vote. Brown's main theme is that he will be the 41st senator and will block the Obama health care plan--which Massachusetts does not need, he explains, because it has its own plan now in operation. Coakley responds by attacking bankers and bringing in big guns like Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, though their appearance underscores her strength among Democratic party regulars and her weakness against independents. A defeat for Coakley, coming on the heels of the Democrats' loss of Virginia and New Jersey in Nov. 2009, would be a major blow to the liberal cause and would reinvigorate the Republican party nationally.  
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Democrats had been favored to keep this Senate seat, and are in a state of shock as the Democratic candidate [[Martha Coakley]] has lost her 30 point lead and fell behind Republican [[Scott Brown]] in the final week. Coakley, a party insider, has proven to be an ineffective candidate who is unable to reach out to independents.  
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The race originally was expected to heavily favor Democrats, since there are a million more registered Democrats than Republicans. But independents are the largest bloc and they have moved heavily to Brown.
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Brown is a much better campaigner, and leads 2-1 among independents, who will elect him if they turn out and vote. Brown's main theme is that he will be the 41st senator and will block the Obama health care plan--which Massachusetts does not need, he explains, because it has its own plan now in operation. Coakley responds by attacking bankers and bringing in big guns like Bill Clinton, John Kerry and Barack Obama. Their appearance only underscores her base is among Democratic party regulars; the independents are rejecting the old time politics by voting for Brown by 2-1. Brown has the momentum going into the final days of the campaign, and leads Coakley by an 8-10 point margin in the final.  
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A defeat for Coakley, coming on the heels of the Democrats' loss of Virginia and New Jersey in Nov. 2009, would be a major blow to the liberal cause and would reinvigorate the Republican party nationally.
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Brown has the momentum going into the final days of the campaign, and leads Coakley by a small margin in recent polls.<ref>[http://thephoenix.com/BLOGS/talkingpolitics/archive/2010/01/05/coakley-brown-polling-fwiw.aspx Coakley-Brown Polling, FWIW, The Boston Phoenix, January 5, 2010]</ref> Public Policy Polling shows Brown with a 1 point lead. <ref>[http://www.politico.com/blogs/scorecard/0110/Poll_Scott_Brown_leading_Coakley_4847.html Poll: Scott Brown ahead of Martha Coakley by 1 point, Politico, January 9, 2010]</ref> A Rasmussen poll has Brown leading Coakley among independents 71-23. <ref>[http://news.bostonherald.com/news/columnists/view.bg?articleid=1225447 Rattled Dems fret over health of Senate seat, Boston Herald, January 14, 2010]</ref>  The race originally was expected to heavily favor Democrats, since there are a million more registered Democrats than Republicans. But independents are the largest bloc and they have moved heavily to Brown. The anti-Democrat sentiment in the country and high GOP and Independent turnout should make this a tight race.
   
==Latest poll results==
 
==Latest poll results==
 
[[File:Sbrown1.jpg|thumb|290px|right|a last minute appeal]]
 
[[File:Sbrown1.jpg|thumb|290px|right|a last minute appeal]]
17,394

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