Snyder takes Michigan guv straw poll

[ccharles000]

A poll of the Michigan GOP field for governor released Friday, on the eve of the 28th Biennial Mackinac Republican Leadership Conference, showed Attorney General Mike Cox in the lead with 30%, followed by Rep. Peter Hoekstra with 23%.

The survey, conducted Sept. 13-17 by Mitchell Research & Communications for the Detroit News, had Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard in third place with at 11% and Ann Arbor businessman Rick Snyder and state Sen. Tom George tied at 2%, with 32% undecided.

But a straw poll conducted at the conference this weekend came up with a dramatically different result—Snyder took first place with 31% of the 1,244 votes, followed by Cox and Bouchard, both of whom had 24%.

Any polls this far out—straw or otherwise—don’t count for much but the high-tech, mini-GOTV effort employed by Snyder’s team at the conference seems like something to keep an eye on.

If you’re interested in some background on the straw poll, here’s the Michigan GOP’s press release, carefully worded so as not to step on any toes.

The straw poll also surveyed the GOP contest for attorney general and former Rep. Bill Schuette came out on top. Schuette’s had an unusual career path—he was elected to the House at the age of 31, ran unsuccessfully for the Senate in 1990, later won election to the state Senate then became a judge on the Michigan Court of Appeals.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/scorecard/0909/Snyder_takes_Michigan_guv_straw_poll.html?showall