Jon Hunstman has “begun dipping his toe back into the political pond–traversing the country at a brisk pace and delivering meaty op-eds and speeches that pointedly address the woes of his party… But when asked if the reception he’s receiving indicates there’s an appetite for another White House run, it’s clear he’s not even sure of the answer,” David Catanese reports.

Said Hunstman: “I don’t know. It’s way premature.”

A new USC Price/Los Angeles Times poll finds Eric Garcetti has opened a commanding 10-point lead in the Los Angeles mayor’s race over rival Wendy Greuel, 50% to 40%.

The poll suggests Greuel’s “dogged fight to win the backing of public employee unions appears to be undercutting her on her home turf in the San Fernando Valley… The survey also found no sign of success for Greuel’s effort to gain an edge among women by highlighting her potential to make history as the city’s first female mayor. Women preferred Garcetti, 50% to 41%.”

A new Western New England University poll in Massachusetts finds that Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA) leads Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA) in a Democratic Senate primary, 44% to 34%.

On the GOP side, Gabriel Gomez (R) is slightly ahead of Michael Sullivan (R), 33% to 27%.

Also interesting: “In hypothetical match-ups for the general election, both Democrats fare better than their Republican counterparts, although the numbers indicate Lynch is more likely to defeat any GOP Senate hopefuls.”

What’s not clear is how accurate a poll conducted in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombings will prove in the end.

Three red-state Democratic senators up for re-election next year – Mark Begich (D-AK), Mark Pryor (D-AR) and Max Baucus (D-MT) – voted against the gun background check measure this week, but not Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA).

Stu Rothenberg explains: “Landrieu always depends on a huge turnout in the black community and a near sweep of the black vote to win election, and voting against the president on guns might have poisoned her relationship with that community. And if Mary loses black voters, Mary can’t win… Obviously, Landrieu needs to hit certain percentages of both black and
white votes to win, but if politics starts with base voters, Landrieu
knows which voters she can’t afford to lose during her 2014 re-election
bid.”

A new Quinnipiac poll in New York City finds Christine Quinn (D) leading the Democratic primary pack at 28%, followed by Anthony Weiner at 15%, Bill de Blasio at 11% and Bill Thompson at 10%.