In Nasty Fight, Weiner's Seat May Go to GOP

Not only did Anthony Weiner lose his own seat, he might have lost it for his party—in a very Democratic district, no less. Republican Bob Turner leads Democrat David Weprin by 47% to 41%, with 7% still undecided, Public Policy Polling finds. Turner’s got a 32-point lead among independents, and he’s even got 29% of Democrats behind him, leaving Weprin with less than 60% support in his own party.

The poll ties Turner’s success to anti-Obama sentiment in the area, but the race is also taking a turn for the nasty: ThinkProgress reports that the GOP blanketed the district with a flier portraying a mosque rising from the ashes of Ground Zero, alongside images of Weprin and Obama, with Weprin quoted as saying, "I support the right of the mosque to build." Meanwhile, Politico leaked details of a nasty 1986 custody battle between Weprin and his ex-wife, in which Weprin is described as "heedless" of his toddler's son's welfare. And while Weprin is "something (well) short of a star candidate," writes Chris Cillizza at the Washington Post, the whole race could soon be a moot point: Many expect the district to disappear in redistricting. (More Anthony Weiner stories.)