Republicans Sen. Ted Stevens’ indictment on charges of concealing $250,000 in gifts and the news that at least one of his primary challengers had made a significant financial investment in the race raised the question of whether the incumbent would even survive the August 26 primary. Now that a couple of weeks have passed, it would seem that Stevens’ nomination is not in as much peril as his legal troubles might suggest.
It helps that Stevens faces six primary opponents, which will divide the anti-Stevens vote. Two of those challengers—former bank president Dave Cuddy and attorney Vic Vickers—have put personal money into the race. Cuddy, who attempted to knock off Stevens in the 1996 primary, has invested $568,000 into the race, $391,000 since July 1, and had spent most of it as of August 6 when he reported having just $8,249 in the bank. Vickers had loaned his campaign $650,000 as of August 6, including $450,000 since July 1, and had $159,279 cash on hand. Neither had raised more than $20,000 in contributions from other sources.
Recent polls suggest that
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