DRIP ... DRIP ... DRIP ... THE POLLS ARE LEAKING OUT

As candidates probe to discover what messages to stress and what possible opponents' weaknesses to exploit as the primary campaign reaches the serious stage (absentee ballot applications begin going out on Monday), their consultants are beginning to leak dribs and drabs of what their polling shows.

Here are two interesting tidbits to come up in the last couple days; I cannot reveal the sources from which they came. Please note that these are private polls, there is no way to verify their authenticity, and the methodology could be suspect. Take them with a grain of salt, but they do add some interesting flavor to the most significant campaigns going on in Ventura County.

1. In testing to see what political figures carry the most weight among county voters, a sampling of voters was asked to say how favorably they regard a number of leading names and organizations. The most remarkable finding is that the standing of Sheriff Bob Brooks appears to have been diminished by months of squabbling with the Board of Supervisors over the divvying up of county resources. The percentage of voters who said they view Brooks either very or somewhat favorably came in at less than 50 percent -- the first time that's happened in recent years for a sheriff of Ventura County, whose endorsement has always been coveted by politicians at every level.

2. In a survey of Republican voters asking their preference in the 37th Assembly District primary, Audra Strickland came out on top. No real surprise, there, since the Strickland name is very familiar to those who've voted for her husband, Tony Strickland, in the last three elections. The surprise is who came in second: Eric McClendon, the Simi Valley attorney who has spent less than $1,000 on his campaign. He finished ahead of Deputy District Jeff Gorell, who has the endorsement of dozens of local elected officials, and legislative aide Mike Robinson, who is spending a half-million dollars of his own money on his campaign.
Why McClendon? The most plausible answer is that five of the first six letters of his last name are the same of those of Sen. Tom McClintock, the most well known Republican elected official in the county. When they are told "McClendon" over the phone, apparently a number of voters hear "McClintock."