Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* In a surprise announcement, Democratic Sen. Tina Smith announced that she won’t run for re-election in Minnesota next year.
* The latest national poll from Marquette Law School found Donald Trump with a 48% approval rating, while 52% disapprove. It’s the second major national poll in recent days to show the Republican president underwater as his second term gets underway. (Click the link for more information on the poll’s methodology and margin of error.)
* Though he faces long odds, businessman Mark Lynch launched a U.S. Senate campaign in South Carolina this week, challenging Sen. Lindsey Graham in a Republican primary. The incumbent senator has a significant war chest, however, and is favored to prevail.
* Speaking of Republicans facing long odds, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco is reportedly moving forward with plans to run for governor in California next year. The Golden State hasn’t elected a GOP governor since Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 2006 candidacy.
* Thomas Ravenel, a former South Carolina treasurer and reality-show personality, launched a Republican gubernatorial campaign on Feb. 6. Five days later, the South Carolinian ended his candidacy, saying he wanted to spend more time with his family.
* And according to the president, election officials in California “just stopped counting their votes on the 2024 Presidential Election.” It’s unclear why Trump would believe such a claim: The state actually wrapped up the vote-counting process two months ago.
This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
