Eighty-six percent of national respondents to an online poll run by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee voted to draft Rep. Joe Sestak (D.,Pa.) to run in next year's primary against noveau Dem Sen. Arlen Specter. More than 7,500 votes were cast, the PAC said.
"I am honored that so many of you took the time to vote in the recent grassroots Straw Poll," Sestak told the committee in a statement. "Let me tell you, I and many others were paying attention. If I decide to run it will be in large measure because of the grassroots energy of so many people like you. Until I and my family make that decision, please accept my thanks and my best wishes as you continue be active participants in our people-powered democracy. Thank you so very much!"
President Obama, Vice President Biden, Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell and other Democratic leaders have rallied around Specter, saying they would back the party's newest senator in the 2010 primary. Specter, 79, is seeking a sixth term.
Some Democrats, particularly netroots liberals and some in organized labor, have expressed irritation with what they see as party elites trying to cram Specter down their throats.
The progressive group is soliciting contributions for a draft Sestak campaign on the ActBlue website. If the congressman decides not to run for Senate, the money will go to other campaigns supported by the progressive network.
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