3 1/2 Points in California: There Goes Arnold, Here Comes Phil

Election campaigns traditionally begin right after Labor Day because voters, getting back from summer distraction and vacation happiness, take a little more time to do what most of us here at HuffPo do all year long -- start paying attention to politics.

Well, here in California -- blue state, Gore state, Kerry state, don't like Bush state -- the first word from voters came out today in a Wall Street Journal/Zogby poll that shows Democrat Phil Angelides has only closed up Arnold Schwarzenegger's lead to 3.5%. "In the back and forth race this year, neither candidate has mustered a lead greater than the poll's margin of error," Zogby reports.

The Governator has spent all summer trying to hide from his close ties to George W. Bush with ">$25 milliion dollars in negative advertising and sheep-in-wolf's-clothing deals with California's Democratic legislature. What has he got for it? A whole lot of nothing.

Momentum matters. Phil's got it.