Polls Show Close Senate Races for Pro-Lifers in California, Nevada, Wisconsin
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
September 24, 2010
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — New polls in California, Nevada and Wisconsin show close races for pro-life candidates seeking Senate seats of longtime abortion advocates. Carly Fiorina, Sharron Angle and Ron Johnson all have the endorsement of pro-life organizations in their respective November contests.
A new Mason-Dixon poll in Nevada shows pro-abortion Democratic leader Sen. Harry Reid tied against Angle with 43% of the vote with 8% still undecided and 6% for other candidates.
The poll found nonpartisan voters breaking Angle’s way, giving her a 20-point lead over Reid, and the combined enthusiasm of Republican and independent voters could put Angle over the top. Both enjoy fairly strong support from their bases — 82 percent for Reid from Democrats and 79 percent for Angle from Republicans.
"The independents have shifted to her by the biggest margin since the primary. If she goes on to win this, maybe this is the first sign that at the end of the day Angle might nose it out," pollster Brad Cocker said.
Three new polls concerning the Wisconsin Senate race show Johnson leading pro-abortion incumbent Sen. Russ Feingold by anywhere from 6 to 11 points among likely voters.
Rasmussen Reports has Johnson ahead 51-44 percent, Public Policy Polling has Johnson up 52-41 and CNN/Time has Johnson leading 51-45.
Rasmussen and PPP have been frequently polling the race and the CNN poll is its first, which makes its results interesting, and also the most recent.
In the CNN/Time poll, Feingold leads Johnson in the full sample of registered voters 48-45, but trails after that sample is screened for likely voters. That underscores the concern Democrats have of getting their voters, most of whom support abortion, out to vote in larger numbers than Republicans and independent, who tend to be pro-life.
Meanwhile, in California, pro-abortion Sen. Barbara Boxer has taken a small leader after running close against Fiorina for months.
A new Field Poll released Thursday finds Boxer, a three-term incumbent, leads 47 percent to 41 percent. it found Boxer still has a 48 percent disapproval rating, but that is down from 52 percent in August thanks to massive television commercials touting her.
"She’s hanging in," said Mark DiCamillo, the poll’s director, according to the Sacramento Bee. "It looks like she’s had a pretty good month or two."
Boxer’s ads began last week and Fiorina, who saw her unfavorable numbers rise from 29 percent to 38 percent since July, unveiled her first television commercial yesterday. That could change the dynamics of the race once the ads have had a chance to sink in with voters.
The poll also found the vote is essentially a referendum on Boxer: Among Boxer supporters, 67 percent said their vote is more for Boxer than against Fiorina while 65 percent of those who supported Fiorina said their preference is against Boxer more than a vote for Fiorina.
Again, turnout could make all the difference in the final results. Democrats, who are expected to represent 44 percent of likely voters in November, backed Boxer by 76 percent to 11 percent. Republicans, who are expected to account for 35 percent of all likely voters, picked Fiorina 79 percent to 10 percent.
Fiorina is behind 46-40 percent among independent voters, which she will need to turn her way before November.
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