Newly-minted Democrat Sen. Arlen Specter is busy trying to woo Democratic leaders from the party chair on down.
Politico reports this morning that Specter is making calls and dropping by to talk to local elected Democratic leaders, county and ward leaders hoping to secure their support in 2010.
Even with the backing of President Obama and Gov. Rendell, it may well be an uphill battle for the former Republican to win over state Democrats, who until recently had been busy lining up candidates to defeat him.
Specter got positive marks from Peggy Grove, chairwoman of the south-central region’s Democratic caucus.
“He sounded energized; he sounded on top of every issue,” said Grove. “I wanted to see whether he was still on top of his game, and he is.”
But Allegheny County Democratic Party chairman James Burn said the "comfort level" among Democrats doesn't exist yet.
“If the primary were tomorrow and there were one or two other formidable contenders in the race, I wouldn’t say with any certainty that he would win," he said.
Specter's only confirmed competition in the Democratic primary is state Rep. William Kortz II from Allegheny County. U.S. Rep. Joe Sestak has not yet decided whether he will run.
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