Good news on the Senate front

Polling data summarized by Real Clear Politics shows that two key Senate contests in which the Democratic candidate has been leading may be turning in favor of the Republican. In North Carolina, Democrat Erskine Bowles has been leading Republican Richard Burr all season. But the latest polls show essentially a dead heat. Bowles faded badly (or else the polls badly overestimated his popularity) in his 2002 race against Elizabeth Dole. Similarly, in Oklahoma, where Democrat Brad Carson has held a clear lead over Republican Tom Coburn for months, the polls show that Coburn now is running no worse than even. President Bush will carry both North Carolina and Oklahoma, and in the latter the state the margin is likely to be huge.
Recent polls also show that Republican Lisa Murkowski has cut into the lead of Democrat Tony Knowles. The most recent poll has Murkowski down by only three percentage points. President Bush should have strong coat-tails in Alaska too.