Washington Poll: Enthusiasm 'Gap' Not a Factor in Senate Race
Paula Wissel, KPLU Reporter (2010-10-29)
The latest round of results of the KCTS 9 - KPLU -Washington Poll were released on Friday, October 29th. SEATTLE, WA
A new poll being released today shows Democrat Patty Murray only slightly ahead of Republican Dino Rossi in the race for a U.S. Senate seat. But incumbent Murray garners 51 percent among people who are likely to actually vote.
The results of the KCTS 9/KPLU/Washington poll are being heard first here on KPLU. The complete results will be available at noon Friday, October 29.
Overall, the numbers show Murray at 49 percent to Rossi's 45 percent. That's within the margin of error of a little over 4 points. That's down substantially from our poll done a few weeks ago, which had Murray up by 8-points.
What's changed is Republican challenger Rossi has picked up support in eastern Washington and among independents.
These results are for all registered voters. If you look just at likely voters, things shift and Murray does much better. 51 percent to Rossi's 45 percent.
University of Washington pollster Matt Barreto says something interesting is happening in Washington when it comes to who's energized and who's not.
"That enthusiasm gap that exists for Republicans in many other states, it's not playing out here in Washington state and it could be the case that some of those tea party supporters just aren't as enthusiastic about Dino Rossi this year as some of the Democrats are about Patty Murray," Barreto said.
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