First Read: “The debate, of course, comes just a day after Cain’s press conference in Arizona, where he defiantly denied the sexual-harassment charges against him… As far as how these allegations might play out in tonight’s debate, consider that all the candidates who aren’t Mitt Romney will probably treat Cain with kid gloves. Why? If Cain’s campaign collapses, they will all want his supporters. And if you go too hard, you risk alienating them. Bottom line: Attacking Cain tonight on this issue, if you are another GOP candidate, comes with more risk than reward.”

David Graham: “They could attack him directly; even the usually detached Romney edged that way Tuesday, saying the allegations against Cain were serious. But that might be unnecessary and counterproductive. Focusing on Cain’s circus rather than, say, high unemployment is bad for the Republican brand, so they may instead let him bleed slowly as they avert their eyes.”

The Election Administrator’s prayer was apparently not answered in Virginia.

The Washington Post reports Democrats’ hopes of maintaining their party’s hold on the state Senate are “very much in doubt” and hinging on a 86 vote lead in a single Senate district. A recount is likely.

Karen Kraushaar, who settled a sexual harassment complaint against Herman Cain in 1999, “complained three years later at her next job about unfair treatment, saying she should be allowed to work from home after a serious car accident and accusing a manager of circulating a sexually charged email,” the AP reports.

A new Public Policy Polling survey in Ohio finds President Obama leading all of his Republican opponents by margins ranging from 9 to 17 points.

Obama leads Mitt Romney, 50% to 41%, tops Herman Cain, 50% to 39%, beats Newt Gingrich, 51% to 38% and crushes Rick Perry, 53% to 36%.

The same poll got the final result of the collective bargaining referendum correct to within one point.

John Avlon: “In past recessions, populist anger was directed at either big business or big government. Now voter anger is directed at both, and the two parties are having a hard time adjusting their left/right playbooks to account for this shift. The anti-incumbent narrative likewise failed last night, as Kentucky Democrat Beshear was easily reelected. Instead, there seem to be a consistent impulse to reject ideological overreach, a reassuring sign of rational ticket-splitting even in this overheated political environment. Neither party should feel false confidence heading into 2012.”

First Read: “Voters punished elected officials for going too far. They might not be
happy with public-sector unions, but they don’t support taking away
their collective-bargaining rights (especially for first-responders).
They might be against abortion in Mississippi, but don’t want to
potentially outlaw things like birth control. They might be troubled by
illegal immigration, but they don’t want their elected officials to look
like they are targeting on specific community. They might believe
government should do something about health care, but they don’t want to
be forced to buy insurance. And they might be concerned about the idea
of voter fraud, but they don’t want to lose rights they had. Politicians
may be pushing absolutes, but voters are sending a different message.”

Eight Republicans take the stage in Michigan tonight at 8 p.m. ET for their ninth presidential debate.

Politico: “When the GOP presidential candidates meet in Michigan Wednesday for a CNBC debate on the economy, they’ll no longer be looking to make a first impression. With less than two months to go before the Iowa caucuses, there’s a much more urgent objective: survival… With the exception of frontrunner Mitt Romney — and perhaps Ron Paul, the libertarian congressman whose devoted base of support never really diminishes or grows — nearly every candidate in the race is almost one misstep away from political death.”

The AP notes the field “will gather just outside Detroit, a city whose fortunes have fallen with the decline of the American auto industry.” Each of the candidates “say they wouldn’t have offered government loans to save two of the three U.S. auto giants. It’s a position that may play well in a GOP primary, where a conservative electorate and tea party backers are calling for less federal spending. But the stance could alienate independent voters – critical players in close general elections.”

Maine voters “repealed a law requiring voters to enroll at least two
days before an election, restoring a four-decade policy of allowing
registrations as late as Election Day,” the Portland Press Herald reports.

“The referendum was put on Tuesday’s ballot through a ‘people’s veto’
initiative after the Republican-controlled Legislature passed a law in
June requiring voters to register at least two business days before an
election is held. Maine’s tradition of allowing “same day” voter
registrations began with a law passed in 1973.”

Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear (D) trounced challenger David Williams (R) and Gatewood Galbraith (I) to win another four-year term as Kentucky’s governor, the Lexington Herald Leader reports.

Phil Bryant (R) won the Mississippi governor’s race, headily defeating Johnny DuPree (D) to succeed Gov. Haley Barbour, who couldn’t seek a third term as governor, the Clarion Ledger reports.

“The 56-year-old Bryant makes history as the first Republican to succeed another Republican as Mississippi governor in modern times. Barbour unseated a one-term Democrat in 2003.”

Karen Kraushaar, one of the two women who settled sexual harassment claims against Herman Cain, spoke to the New York Times for the first time about her allegations.

Kraushaar said that she “was upset that her name had leaked into some press reports. But she said that she had decided to speak out now that her identity was publicly known.”

Said Kraushaar: “When you are being sexually harassed in the workplace, you are extremely vulnerable. You do whatever you can to quickly get yourself into a job some place safe, and that is what I thought I had achieved when I left.”

She added she had been warming “to the idea of a joint press conference
where all of the women would be together with our attorneys and all of
this evidence would be considered together.”

“I don’t even know who this lady is.”

— Herman Cain, in an interview with ABC News, denying he even remembers Sharon Bialek, the woman who accused him yesterday of sexual harassment.