Politicker Staff's blog

U.S. Sen. John Ensign at the Republican National Convention: Getty Images PhotoBelow is a transcript of remarks made by U.S. Sen. John Ensign (R-Las Vegas) at the Republican National Convention Thursday evening, as prepared for delivery.

U.S. Sen. John Ensign (R-Las Vegas) is scheduled to address the Republican National Convention in St. Paul this evening between 4 and 5 p.m.

Republican presidential nominee U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) will speak between 7 and 8 p.m.

The latest voter registration numbers out of Nevada's most competitive Congressional District could be seen as an indicator that 3rd District incumbent U.S. Rep. Jon Porter's (R-Henderson) task of defending his seat has become a little more difficult in a state that appears to be trending toward the Democrats.



According to statistics from the Secretary of State's Web site, Democrats in the district held a narrow partisan registration advantage of 41.5 to 38.9 percent among active voters in January. By August, the 2.6 percentage point margin grew by nearly 4 points to a 43.5 to 37.0 percent advantage. Democrats added nearly 18,700 active voters to the rolls while Republicans added nearly 3,000.

In the 2nd Congressional District where incumbent U.S. Rep. Dean Heller (R-Carson City) is considered the favorite, Republicans saw over an 11-point registration advantage in January shrink by 4 percentage points, leaving the GOP with a solid 44.3 to 36.7 percent edge in August. The 2nd was the only district where the absolute number of active Republican voters decreased during the time period between January and August. While Democrats added 12,700 voters, Republicans lost nearly 1,200.



The fourth and final day of the Democratic National Convention will be called to order at 5:00 PM EST on Thursday, with a theme of "Change You Can Believe In."

The final day's events will take place at INVESCO Field at Mile High, where over 70,000 people are expected to attend.

Featured speakers will include Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter (D), former Vermont Gov. and Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean (D), New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson (D), U.S. Rep. and U.S. Senate candidate Mark Udall (D-Colo.), Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine (D), former Vice President Al Gore (D) and U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D).

U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), the Democratic presidential nominee, is scheduled to address the convention at 10 p.m. EST.

The full schedule is below.

U.S. Sen. Harry Reid at the Democratic National Convention: Getty Images PhotoBelow is a transcript of remarks made by U.S. Sen Harry Reid (D-Searchlight) at the Democratic National Convention Wednesday evening, as prepared for delivery.

In an interview Wednesday morning with "Face to Face" host Jon Ralston, U.S. Sen. Harry Reid (D-Searchlight) refused to back down from comments he made last week to colleague U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) that "I can't stand John McCain."

Instead, he ramped up his criticism of the Arizona U.S. senator and presumptive Republican presidential nominee.

U.S. Sen. Harry Reid (D-Searchlight) is scheduled to address the Democratic National Convention this evening. The Senate Majority Leader will probably speak around 5 p.m. (PST).

The theme of the day's events is "Securing America's Future."

The third day of the Democratic National Convention will be called to order at 5:00 PM EST on Wednesday, with a theme of "Securing America's Future."

The day will begin with the nominating process for President, including nominating speeches for U.S. Sens. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.), followed by a roll call vote.

The headline speaker will be vice presidential nominee, U.S. Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.).

Featured speakers will include President Bill Clinton (D), U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Gov. Bill Richardson (D-N.M.), U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.), U.S. Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and former U.S. Sen. Tom Daschle (D-S.D.).

The full schedule is below.

The Republican National Convention announced a series of additional speakers for next week's events in St. Paul, and it includes U.S. Sen. John Ensign (R-Las Vegas).

Ensign, the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, is scheduled to address the convention on Monday.

The second day of the Democratic National Convention will be called to order at 5:00 PM EST today, with a theme of "Renewing America's Promise."  Featured speakers include Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D-Kan.), U.S. Sen. Robert Casey, Jr. (D-Pa.), Gov. Deval Patrick (D-Mass.), and Gov. Brian Schweitzer (D-Mont.). The keynote speaker will be Gov. Mark Warner (D-Va.), followed by the headline prime-time speaker, U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.).

The full schedule is below.