The DC: Chuck Heath & Son become sought-after figures in GOP primary races

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Although Sarah Palin hasn't endorsed a candidate in the Nevada GOP senate primary, Danny Tarkanian has the next best thing -- the backing of her father and brother. According to Alex Pappas, it may help:

Chuck Heath Jr., a 48-year-old schoolteacher from Anchorage, says both he and his dad receive constant requests for endorsements across the country, but grant few. So far they’ve endorsed just four candidates. “Of course, their ultimate goal is they want Sarah’s endorsement,” Heath explained during an interview Wednesday with The Daily Caller.

The Heaths first met Danny Tarkanian during the 2008 election. “Their family got really behind our family, and especially Sarah, and we kind of struck up a friendship that way,” Chuck Jr. said. Tarkanian, son of the famous coach and a former NBA player himself, bonded with the family over basketball. When Tarkanian called to say he was running for the nomination, Palin’s brother remembers, it wasn’t a tough call. “We told him, you worked for us and we believe in what you stand for also — and especially running against Harry Reid, we’ll do whatever we can to get behind you.”

The Tarkanian campaign has been using Palin’s father as a surrogate since last fall. In October, Chuck Sr. made five stops throughout the state for Tarkanian. In November, the retired schoolteacher signed a fundraising letter. In March, he cut a radio ad that’s still on the air today.

The Tarkanian campaign, says spokesman James Fisfis, has “certainly valued the endorsement” – which, while “it doesn’t guarantee any votes,” does “guarantee that you do get attention and people will take a look at your platforms and what you’re saying.” The presence of Palin’s father and son “shines attention on Danny,” he says. “We were able to have events and bring people together. They all wanted to meet and hangout with the Palins.”

Chuck Jr. says he doesn’t know if his sister Sarah will make an endorsement in the Nevada primary, where former state Assemblywoman Sharron Angle, former State Senator Sue Lowden and Tarkanian are the three leading contenders in a field of nine candidates.

Lowden, who is considered to be the establishment GOP candidate still leads the race with 30 percent, according to a Mason-Dixon poll conducted May 10-11 for the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Angle, who has the endorsement of Tea Party Express, has surged recently and is now right behind Lowden at 25 percent. At the beginning of April, before the TPX endorsement, Angle was at a distant 5 percent in the polls. Tarkanian is not far behind Angle in third place with 22 percent.

TPX calls for Danny Tarkanian to drop out of NV U.S. Senate race

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A leading Tea Party organization is asking Danny Tarkanian to drop out of the U.S. Senate race in Nevada. A news release from Tea Party Express (TPX) claims that the latest polling results indicate that Tarkanian has dropped into third place in the race for the GOP nomination, behind Sue Lowden and TPX-endorsed Sharron Angle:

The Tea Party Express is formally requesting U.S. Senate candidate Danny Tarkanian terminate his campaign for U.S. Senate as new polling data confirms Tarkanian has fallen into third place and dropping.

"Danny Tarkanian has been a strong supporter of the tea party movement, and he can best help this movement by ending his campaign for U.S. Senate," said Bryan Shroyer, Political Director for the Tea Party Express.

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"We really like Danny. He's been personable, intelligent and straightforward in his dealings with us," said the Tea Party Express's Shroyer.

"Sadly, it has become increasingly clear, however, that his campaign has failed to catch fire with voters. He is receiving less support in the polls now than when he first announced his candidacy despite having spent over $800,000 to reach voters (according to the most recent data reported by the FEC).

If Danny Tarkanian listens to the tea party group and ends his campaign, it could head off a potentially awkward situation for Sarah Palin. Her father and brother have endorsed and campaigned for Tarkanian, but the governor has yet to make an endorsement in the race. The withdrawal of Tarkanian would clear the way for Gov. Palin to endorse either Sharron Angle or Sue Lowden without any appearance of divided loyalties withing the Palin camp.

But judging from the defiant stance taken by the Tarkanian campaign in response to the TPX request, the son of successful and colorful college basketball coach Jerry Tarkanian isn't about to go quietly anytime soon:

A spokesman for Tarkanian's campaign issued a statement calling the request a "money grab" by a consulting firm "making big money off the Tea Party Express."

"The Tea Party Express is leading the corporatization of the Tea Party movement and it's distasteful," said Tarkanian consultant James Fisfis.

It's not clear which of the two women the 2008 GOP vice presidential candidate would support should Tarkanian finally relent and exit the contest. The Susan B. Anthony List, parent organization of Team Sarah, has endorsed Lowden, as has Sen. John Kyl and Jerri Thompson. In addition to the Tea Party movement, Angle has the backing of the National Federation of Republican Assemblies, Club for Growth, Concerned Women for America, and conservative talk show host Mark Levin. If Tarkanian refuses to exit the race, we're not sure if Gov. Palin would want to get involved in what is rapidly becoming a contentious Republican primary.

A new survey just out from Democrat firm Public Policy Polling (PPP) in Nevada finds Sharron Angle has surged ahead of Lowden and now leads with 29 percent of likely voters. Sue Lowden now follows at 26 percent and Danny Tarkanian has 24 percent of the vote. A recent Mason-Dixon poll of 500 likely Republican primary voters in the Silver State, conducted for the Las Vegas Review-Journal, had Lowden in first place with 30 percent, followed by Angle with 25 percent and Tarkanian at 22 percent. All three leading GOP candidates have taken pro-life positions.

- JP

Chuck Heath to stump for Danny Tarkanian in Nevada

From the website of Danny Tarkanian, candidate for the U.S. Senate:

"Danny is proud to announce that Chuck Heath, father of former Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin, will be in Nevada to campaign for him the first weekend of October."

More info here.

- JP