In one of the more obscure races that will unfold this Election Day, Democrat Ned Lamont, Independent Joe Lieberman, and Republican Alan Schlessinger will be facing off in Connecticut’s senatorial contest. The focus, however, will be on Lamont, and Lieberman, the incumbent, who both hold a considerable lead over their Republican opponent. The reason is that Lieberman, a life long Democrat, will be running as an Independent, after having lost the Democratic primary to Lamont back in August. Looking at Lieberman’s track record would suggest that he is a liberal Democrat, but his stance on the War in Iraq contradicts this. Unlike many of his Democratic peers, he supports the war, and has thus gained the support of many in the Republican Party, including praise from President Bush. “One man who’s stood by [my] decision is Joe Lieberman,” Bush said in a recent television interview. “He understands the consequences.” Bush argued that the Democratic Party “ran [Lieberman] out of the party because he stood on principle.” It is this presidential support that may cost Lieberman the election, or help him win it. Lamont is hoping to use the President’s support of Lieberman to win the votes of those upset with the President’s policies in Iraq. “Clearly President Bush and Dick Cheney are out there campaigning for Joe Lieberman,” Lamont said Tuesday during a campaign stop. “They think it’s a vote that they can count upon in a pinch ... The president is out there speaking loud and clear on behalf of Joe.” Nonetheless, a Quinnipiac poll from October 20th shows that Lieberman now holds a 52-35 percent lead over Democratic candidate Ned Lamont (up from 49-39 percent a month ago), with 6 percent for Republican Alan Schlesinger and 7 percent undecided. Political pundits point to this election as a sign of the increasing polarization of both political parties and their shifts to the extremes of the political spectrum. However, Lieberman denies these charges. “I have said from the first days after the primary...that I was not going to allow this campaign to become a national political plaything for either side or anybody,” he said.

Lieberman has stated that if he wins, he will remain with the Democratic Party. Nonetheless, the election proves to have a major impact in the American political arena this November 7th.