In a sign of serious worry about the increasingly tense battle for Ted Kennedy’s seat, the Democratic National Committee and the Martha Coakley campaign have blasted a private memo to top national Dem donors claiming internal polling shows the race is “very tight” and making an “urgent” appeal for donations. The memo, which was sent over by a source, is the latest sign that the campaign surge of GOPer Scott Brown has caught the Dem establishment off guard. It admits that the mobilization by big national conservative groups for Brown is “working” and acknowledges that the Dem camaign is “having trouble moving independents.”
“Our internal polling shows the race to be a very tight race that means we must do everything we can to ensure we are victorious,” reads the memo, which was written by Coakley’s finance chairman and sent to top donors late yesterday by the DNC.
“This additional assistance being spent on Brown’s behalf seems to be working,” the memo continues, alluding to outside cash being spent by groups such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Club for Growth. “Polling shows that Republican voters are more energized than Democrats and that we are having trouble moving Independents.”
“We have a battle on our hands,” the memo continues, beseeching donors to “max out” with a contribution of $2400. “We cannot win this race unless everyone comes together and gives this race everything they can.”
The memo’s claim that the Coakley campaign’s internal polling shows the race to be “very tight” appears at odds with another leaked internal Dem poll that showed Coakley with a double-digit lead.
Separately, Ben Smith reports that the DNC is poised to sink $500,000 into the race — still another sign that national Dems see the need for an urgent last-minute push to salvage Kennedy’s seat.
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Update: On a private conference call with top Dem donors today, Martha Coakley acknowledged that Scott Brown’s surge has been “frightening.”
