The bitter struggle now expected over filling the seat of the late, brilliant conservative Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has given Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign a much-needed shot of adrenaline just as it appeared to be losing momentum to Democratic rival Sen. Bernie Sanders.
Polls showed Sanders pulling into a statistical dead heat with Clinton following his whopping 22-point margin of victory in New Hampshire. But with ideological control of the Supreme Court now up for grabs depending on which party wins in November, the focus of the Democratic base is expected to shift to electability — an issue Clinton has made the central theme of her campaign.
Nonpartisan, conservative commentator Matt Towery of the InsiderAdvantage polling firm tells Newsmax: "The person who benefits the most from this very sad situation is Hillary Clinton, because Clinton has the opportunity to say, 'Look, you need to elect me, a serious person who can win. Because I will keep someone on the Court who will preserve Roe v. Wade.'"
Towery added: "This untimely news could be a lifesaver, or a God-send, for Hillary Clinton."
Clinton's ability to garner support from women should especially get a boost, Towery says.
So far Clinton has been oddly ineffective in mobilizing female supporters to vigorously support her candidacy. But with key issues like reproductive rights likely to be in the headlines in coming months as President Obama tries to push through a Supreme Court nominee – one who could shift the ideological balance of the Court strongly to the left — Towery believes Clinton finally may be able to capitalize on gender differences in her campaign.
"I think this is her catalyst to bring female voters over to her side, which she's been looking for," he said "Madeleine Albright tried to beat it out of women, saying they're going to go to hell. That didn't work.
"So I think the Supreme Court opening may coalesce women support around Hillary Clinton on the Democratic side."
Some Democratic strategists apparently agree. Just hours after the news of Scalia's death broke, Democratic political guru David Axelrod sent out a Tweet calling it "a seismic event, [that] surely will reverberate in campaign, focusing both sides on stakes."
Axelrod, who played a key role in helping Barack Obama capture the presidency, added: "Electability may move up as a concern in Democratic race as a consequence of Scalia's death. Feels like this may favor @HillaryClinton."
Towery doubts the Scotus vacancy will have the same impact on Republicans, in part because Trump has a significant, if not commanding, lead in the national polls.
"I don't see voters in Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, and these other places really making their decision based on the Supreme Court," he said.
"So on the Republican side, I don't think that you'll see a big impact. On the Democratic side," he added, "I think it could have a big impact.
"… If you think Roe v. Wade, you think Hillary. She would be the one who is going to be the beneficiary of this in the long term."
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