CT-SEN POLL: Blumenthal 53, McMahon 41

[jefferson_dem]

Blumenthal Up on McMahon By Double Digits

Raleigh, N.C. – Contrary to polls in the last week showing Linda McMahon closing to a
single-digit deficit behind Richard Blumenthal in the Connecticut Senate race, PPP’s first
measure of the race since January shows the Democrat still well ahead, though not by the
20-point-plus edge he had had in the spring. The state’s popular Democratic Attorney
General leads the Republican WWE executive, 53-41, among likely voters.

Blumenthal is the rare Democrat whose party is more unified than the GOP is, and who is
not getting beaten badly with independents. He ties at 45% with unaffiliateds, and is
pulling 84% of his party to McMahon’s 79% of Republicans because the Democrat is
getting 15% crossover support to McMahon’s 11%. With 41% of voters claiming to be
Democrats, 31% independents, and only 28% Republicans, those advantages fuel
Blumenthal’s healthy lead.

The two candidates’ personal numbers are exactly flipped, Blumenthal with a strong 53-
39 favorability rating to McMahon’s 39-53. Voters also diverge in how they perceive the
candidates’ suitability for office. 63% believe Blumenthal fit to serve, but only 47%
think that of McMahon, with 44% explicitly saying she is unfit to be a senator.

There is an enthusiasm gap in the Nutmeg State, but not quite as high as in many other
states. President Obama beat John McCain by 22 points in 2008, but the 2010 electorate
reports having cast ballots for Obama by only a 15-point margin over McCain. If the
voter set matched 2008’s, and everything else were true, Blumenthal would be up 56-38.

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http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/pdf/PPP_Release_CT_104424.pdf