BREAKING NEWS: Ridge won’t run for Senate

After much speculation, former Gov. Tom Ridge today announced that he would not seek the GOP nomination for Senate next year.

In a statement, Ridge said he had been heartened by the support and encouragement he received from within the party and that it had been a difficult decision for him. He expressed a desire to still be involved in the party’s development.

“To those who believe that the Republican Party is facing challenges, they…

May 7, 2009 at 12:37 pm | Comments (24)

Ridge: A stronger force to compete with Specter

Tom Ridge, the former Governor and Secretary of Homeland Security, is flirting with the idea of running for Senate against Arlen Specter. If Ridge decides to run for Senator, Specter will have to work harder to win the seat.

In a recent Quinnipiac poll, Specter is shown to currently lead against Republican Pat Toomey by 53 – 33 percentage points.

If Ridge decides to run for Senator, however, Specter will only have a 3 percent…

May 7, 2009 at 11:58 am | Comments (0)

Asher: Ridge would be an ‘excellent candidate’

State Republican big-wig Bob Asher says former Gov. Tom Ridge would make an ideal Senate candidate for the party, and has made moves to encourage him into the race, Capitolwire reports (subscription only).

Asher, an RNC committeeman, had a poll commissioned through his political action committee. The

May 6, 2009 at 12:35 pm | Comments (3)

UPDATED: Internal poll—seemingly vague—shows Ridge topping Specter

Yet another internal poll released Tuesday shows a close general election matchup between Senator Arlen Specter and former Gov. Tom Ridge.

The poll, which was reportedly conducted by Specter’s former pollster, showed Ridge topping Specter in a general election, 48 percent to 41 percent, with 10 percent undecided and a 3.7 percent margin of error. It also showed Ridge easily beating Pat Toomey in the Republican primary, and Specter easily beating Congressman Joe Sestak (D-7)…

May 5, 2009 at 6:28 pm | Comments (1)

Ridge 50-50 on Senate run

Former Gov. Tom Ridge is apparently pretty conflicted about whether or not to run for Senate, as a source close to him tells PoliticsPA that the chances he will run are

May 5, 2009 at 2:16 pm | Comments (1)

Sestak, Ridge and Specter (the latest)

As I predicted, the assumption that Arlen Specter would glide to reelection as a Democrat has lasted less than a week. Former Gov. Tom Ridge is thinking about a race and Congressman Joe Sestak (D-7) never really stopped thinking about it. (I’ve never been an Admiral, but my guess is people who’ve spent their lives giving orders don’t like being backbenchers indefinitely, or having other people tell them what to do.)

The betting here is…

May 5, 2009 at 9:31 am | Comments (0)

A Specter-Toomey blowout

Surprise, surprise:

May 5, 2009 at 9:25 am | Comments (0)

Ridge gets WaPo love

The word on Tom Ridge is

May 5, 2009 at 8:59 am | Comments (0)

Automated PAC poll shows a closer Senate race

An automated poll commissioned by a Pennsylvania business group shows former Gov. Tom Ridge beating Senator Arlen Specter by  a razor-thin margin in a potential general election. The poll also found Specter beating Republican Pat Toomey by only six points in the general election.

The poll, released Monday by a political action committee tied to the Pennsylvania Business Council and first reported by

May 4, 2009 at 8:43 pm | Comments (2)

DelCo Dem: If Ridge gets in, Democrats ‘better nominate Sestak’

A Democratic leader in Congressman Joe Sestak’s (D-7) Delaware County district says party leaders trying to clear the primary field for Senator Arlen Specter should be nervous about

May 4, 2009 at 10:31 am | Comments (6)