Polls, Pro-Life Group Confident Scott Brown Will Defeat Martha Coakley in Mass
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
January 18, 2010
Boston, MA (LifeNews.com) — A slate of new polls and the statewide pro-life group in Massachusetts are confident that Senate candidate Scott Brown will defeat pro-abortion activist Martha Coakley in the race for the seat vacated by the late pro-abortion Sen. Ted Kennedy.
Four new polls released in the last 48 hours all show Brown leading Coakley anywhere from three to ten points.
The Democratic firm PPP, which, despite its partisan bent, had a good track record in the 2008 elections, shows Brown extending his lead from one point last week to five points now.
The conservative media outlet Pajamas Media has a poll by the Republican firm CrossTarget showing Brown up by 10 percent.
All of the polls have Coakley under the magic 50 percent mark, which prompted respected political analyst Stu Rothenberg to change his ranking of the race from a toss-up to a "leaning takeover" for Brown, who opposes the pro-abortion health care bill in Congress.
Rothenberg writes today: "While special elections often come down to turnout – and they therefore are more difficult to predict than normal elections – the combination of public and private survey research and anecdotal information now strongly suggests that Republican Scott Brown will defeat Democrat Martha Coakley in tomorrow’s race to fill the remainder of the late-Sen. Edward Kennedy’s seat."
"Brown is running extremely well with independents in the Bay State, and unless Democratic turnout exceeds everyone’s expectations, Brown is headed for a comfortable win," he continued.
Officials at Massachusetts Citizens for Life also believe Brown will likely win the race.
The group emailed LifeNews.com saying their PAC "predicts Scott Brown will win tomorrow’s special U S Senate race."
The MCFL PAC has been working since last September to elect the candidate it describes as the "vote that will defeat the health care bill."
The group completed 440,000 phone calls to pro-life people in the state, distributed 170,000 cards urging votes for Brown, and aired radio ads on major stations across the state.
That puts PAC chairman John Rowe in a position to say he thinks Coakley will lose.
"We feel sure our huge outreach to pro-lifers in Massachusetts will bring them to the polls," he said. "Currently, more than 50% of people self identify as pro-life."
"The right to life election differential is 2:1. Of those people who vote on the abortion issue, twice as many vote pro-life. This has been consistent across the country for years. Brown will benefit from this differential," he said.
Anne Fox, the president of the state pro-life group, told LifeNews.com she is thankful for the "hundreds and hundreds of people who worked so hard to accomplish this effort."
"Right to life people have such wonderful commitment which translates into very effective action," she said.
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