OBAMARAMA

Joel Benenson, a pollster who ran the 1996 Clinton-Gore campaign’s polling operation and worked on 10 Democratic House races in 2006 (eight of which were successful — and three of which unseated Republican incumbents), has joined the Obama campaign, according to TPMCafe’s Greg Sargent.

In addition to being a valuable asset, the Benenson pickup holds another kind of significance: he’s a former Clinton associate who has extensive experience in New York political circles. As Sargent notes:

The New York-based Benenson has also worked in New York gubernatorial and mayoral politics. He polled for former New York Governor Mario Cuomo, and in the 2005 mayoral race, he was pollster for Dem Congressman and mayoral hopeful Anthony Weiner, a long-shot candidate who surprised New York politicos by coming in a solid second place and almost forcing a runoff against eventual Dem nominee Fernando Ferrer. The campaign is set to announce Benenson’s hiring today.

Sargent underscores how much the campaign wanted Benenson involved, quoting a source who said “He’s one of the best out there. We absolutely wanted to have him on board.” Judging from this December 2006 Newsweek article, the feeling is mutual:

The electoral map might not be as daunting for Obama as it appears. Democratic pollster Joel Benenson points out that an African-American candidate on the ticket might make states like Virginia and North Carolina competitive for Democrats. Even Republican strategists concede that those who would vote against Obama purely on race are unlikely to vote Democratic anyway.

Benenson will reportedly be running Sen. Obama’s New Hampshire polling operation.