Democratic voters are "frustrated" with Kentucky Senate candidate Alison Lundergan Grimes after she again refused to acknowledge whether she voted for Barack Obama during Monday night’s debate with incumbent Sen. Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.).
CNN reporter Dana Bash said Grimes’ evasive answer about standing on ‘principle’ was her "weakest moment" during the debate and noted that her reluctancy was due more to political considerations.
"Mitt Romney won in Kentucky by 24 points, and Mitch McConnell said it himself during the debate: Obama lost 116 out of 120 counties in Kentucky, and that was when he was relatively popular back in 2012 nationwide," Bash said. "Giving Republicans the gift of saying I voted for Barack Obama… is something they're clearly worried about."
After repeatedly doubling down—even quadrupling down, in one case—Grimes is walking a fine line between sticking to the ‘principle’ of a secret ballot and alienating voters who find her evasive.
"She says it’s principle," Bash said. "But it really looks political."