Free Republic

Rep. John Spratt (D-S.C.) trails Republican Mick Mulvaney by 10 points, 39 percent to 49 percent, with 10 percent of likely voters undecided, according to The Hill 2010 Midterm Election Poll. Mulvaney is winning independents by 23 points and leads among male, female, middle-aged and older voters. The only group Spratt leads is younger voters, but he’s winning that unpredictable voting group by a mere two points. Spratt’s favorability rating is 41 percent, with 47 percent rating him unfavorably. And 43 percent said Spratt’s 14 terms in Congress were a reason to vote against him. Spratt is the chairman of...

State Sen. Mick Mulvaney (R), who is challenging House Budget Chairman John Spratt (D), will be promoted today to the second-highest level of the National Republican Congressional Committee's "Young Guns" fundraising and campaign infrastructure program. The move to name Mulvaney as one of 22 "Contender" candidates comes ahead of what committee officials expect to be a strong first-quarter fundraising report. When he entered the race in October, Mulvaney's deep pockets were viewed as an attractive campaign asset. In the fourth quarter, he loaned himself $75,000, which helped him show more campaign receipts than Spratt for the three-month period. Spratt, a...