Dante Scala

Editors note: This is a daily summary of news about the U.S. Senate race between U.S. Sen. John Sununu (R-Waterville Valley) and former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen (D-Madbury).

Today in the Senate race it was all about op-eds and speeches.

I am proud to announce that Dante Scala, UNH political science professor and New Hampshire political numbers expert, is joining PolitickerNH.com as a regular contributor.

You can find his posts along the light orange contributor column to the right.

In addition to teaching, Scala is the author of the book "Stormy Weather: The New Hampshire Primary and Presidential Politics". It is a must read for anyone interested in New Hampshire politics.

For the past year he has also run the blog GraniteProf and before that write a popular column on PoliticsNH.com called "By the Numbers".

You can read his first column here.

One reason both campaigns might be running ads now is to get out their initial message, according to University of New Hampshire professor Dante Scala.

"The window for running ads is about to close because of the summer, when most voters aren't paying attention to politics," Scala said. "So you run your ads now then tune-it-down until Labor Day."

Though the ads are local they appeal to national donors who both campaigns will look towards for financial support.

U.S. Sen. John Sununu (R-Waterville Valley) campaign organization, or lack thereof, was the subject of two articles.

The Eagle-Tribune has Paul Collins saying the campaign will open a Manchester office, later this month.

Now that U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona) has gained the Republican presidential nomination the debate is over whether or not McCain's presence on the ballot will benefit New Hampshire Republican candidates.

This morning New Hampshire Republican Party Chairman Fergus Cullen released a statement with the title "McCain Nomination Great News for NH Republicans."

The proposed state education funding amendment dominated the conversation on the local Sunday shows.

Days after the New Hampshire primary, the New Hampshire Democratic Party released a statement with the headline "2008 Primary Turns NH A Deeper Shade of Blue."

The release argued that an increase in the number of Democratic primary voters, combined Democratic victories in 2006, shows that the Granite State has gone from a "purple state" to a "blue state."