HAWAII: THE NEW NEW JERSEY?

Riiiight:

President Bush and Sen. John Kerry are deadlocked among likely voters in Hawai'i, a surprising boost for the Republican president in a state that many Democrats had considered safe for Kerry.

The findings of the Honolulu Advertiser Hawai'i Poll suggest that Hawai'i's four electoral votes are in play with just over a week to go before the election. Nationally, other opinion polls have found that Bush and Kerry are essentially tied for the popular vote.

The Hawai'i Poll, taken among 600 likely voters statewide between Oct. 13 and Monday, had Bush at 43.3 percent and Kerry at 42.6 percent. The margin of error was 4 percentage points.

A large number of voters, 12 percent, said they were still undecided, giving supporters of both candidates hope during the final days of the campaign.

Theory: I think some sneaky Democrats are floating some fake close poll numbers in an effort to get Bush to take time out of his busy Iowa-and-Wisconsin-only schedule to fly out to Hawaii and campaign.

Hey, it worked in New Jersey. Muahaha.