Monday, October 06, 2014

New Poll: Alison Grimes Narrowly Leads Mitch McConnell in Senate Race


Today was a day for celebration, but it is also a day where progressives and LGBT Americans need to realize that they cannot let up in their efforts to defeat Republicans who seek to keep racism, anti-gay discrimination, and vulture capitalism alive and well.  I for one hope that gays will be galvanized by today's historic developments and will not only get out and vote for Democrats in the 2014 midterm elections and encourage their families and friends to do likewise.  Part of this effort is to see individuals like GOP Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.  Thankfully, a new poll suggests that McConnell is in the battle for his political survival (which I want to see him lose).  Salon has details on the new poll results.  Here are excerpts:
Democratic challenger Alison Lundergan Grimes narrowly leads Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in Kentucky’s Senate race, a new Bluegrass poll finds.

The poll gives Grimes a two point lead over the 30-year incumbent, 46 to 44 percent. That’s within the poll’s margin of error, but it’s the first survey to show Grimes in the lead since early June, according to RealClearPolitics’ database. Most recent polls have given McConnell, once seen as the most vulnerable Republican Senate incumbent, a lead in the mid- to high-single digits; the last Bluegrass poll put the GOP stalwart on top, 46 to 42 percent.

The latest survey may yet prove to be an outlier; a CBS/New YorkTimes/YouGov poll released just yesterday showed McConnell with a 47 to 41 percent lead; that survey, however, was conducted from September 20 to October 1, while the Bluegrass poll was taken from September 29 to October 2.

Determining whether the Bluegrass poll is an outlier or the beginning of a new trend will, of course, require more polling. But if Grimes has indeed managed to right her campaign’s ship, observers may ascribe her improving fortunes to a widely-touted new ad featuring Grimes campaigning with former President Bill Clinton. While President Barack Obama is deeply unpopular in Kentucky, Clinton continues to benefit from a reservoir of goodwill in the state, which he was the last Democratic candidate to win in a general election. Politico reported Friday that former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton also plans to campaign with Grimes ahead of the November 4 vote.
 

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