Jun 13, 2008 6:55 pm US/Central
How Ventura Candidacy Could Impact The Senate Race
(WCCO)
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In a recent poll, Jesse Ventura comes in at 24 percent, behind Al Franken at 32 percent and Norm Coleman at 39 percent. (File)
AP
Former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura has hinted he may be interested in joining the race for U.S. Senate. A new poll shows that while Ventura comes in third, he does have double-digit support.
The Rasmussen/Fox 9 poll shows if the vote was held in a two-way race, incumbent Republican Norm Coleman has the edge over Al Franken, 48 to 45 percent, but that's within the poll's margin of error of 4.5 percent.
However, things change if you add Ventura into the mix.
Former U.S. Senator Dean Barkley is taking himself out of the U.S. Senate race this year, but he said former governor Jesse Ventura might jump in.
"He hates this war. He thinks Coleman has just been a rubber stamp for the President. Dislikes that to his core. That motivates him to want to get into it," said Barkley.
Ventura lives much of every year in Mexico, and his close friends said he's reluctant to give up that lifestyle. He's back in the country now, promoting a new book and signaling he might jump into the race.
"I don't know. I'm thinking about it, I don't know how serious yet. But let's remember, I already beat Norm Coleman once," said Ventura on CNN.
"When he was running for governor and you beat him?" asked Wolf Blitzer.
"That's right," answered Ventura.
If Ventura does run for office, he's already got one valuable campaign asset: his name. Just about everybody in Minnesota knows who Ventura is, even if their opinions of him are mixed.
There's good news for Ventura in a poll commissioned by Twin Cities station Fox 9. It puts him at 24 percent, behind Franken at 32 percent and Coleman at 39 percent.
The bad news is that 62 percent of Minnesotans have an unfavorable impression of Ventura. That doesn't mean he can't win, according to Barkley.
"I know him. I know his abilities. Never underestimate Jesse Ventura. He can pull rabbits out of the hat. And he won't have to find a rabbit on this one. He just has to be who he is," said Barkley.
Barkley also said Ventura will make a decision on the Senate race in a month, just before official filings close.
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