Rendell: Pa. primary will be 'very close'

Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell (D) was careful Monday when asked to predict the outcome of his state's closely contested Senate primary race.

Rendell, a backer of Republican-turned-Democratic Sen. Arlen Specter, was asked on MSNBC to "guarantee" that Specter would win.

"It's a very close race and Arlen needs a good turnout from the southeast, and particularly from the city of Philadelphia," Rendell said.

Polls generally show Specter locked in a statistical tie with Rep. Joe Sestak (D-Pa.), who is challenging Specter from the left.

One of the central themes of Sestak's campaign has been that Specter, a long-time Republican senator, is not a "true Democrat."

"Joe's been saying all along, 'I'm the real Democrat,'" Rendell said. "Well Joe, Democrats support Democrats against someone like [presumed Republican nominee, former Rep.] Pat Toomey. I think Joe lost a lot of credibility when he said he wouldn't necessarily support Arlen.

"It seems to me that Arlen Specter is the better Democrat, because he said he would support Joe Sestak," he added.

Cross-posted to the Ballot Box

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