October 24, 200619 yr AP- TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Florida's gubernatorial race between Republican Charlie Crist and Democrat Rep. Jim Davis has narrowed, with the two candidates running just about even, according to a new poll released Monday as early voting began in the state. Crist, the state attorney general, had enjoyed double-digit leads in previous polls. The new Quinnipiac University Poll found him favored by 46 percent of likely voters to 44 percent for Davis, with 8 percent undecided. That is within the margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.4 percentage points. Eleven percent of respondents indicated they could still change their minds. Earlier this month, Crist was favored 53 percent to 43 percent in a similar sampling by the Connecticut-based polling institute. Gov. Jeb Bush is prohibited by law from seeking a third consecutive term. Davis didn't start his television advertising until early October and has made inroads among independent voters and women since then. He led Crist 50 percent to 36 percent among independents in a state where one in five voters is independent. Assistant poll director Peter Brown said the change in the poll numbers could reflect the new Davis TV ads and "the cumulative effect of the questions about (former U.S. Rep. Mark) Foley, the Republican leadership and general disenchantment of the Bush administration." The random telephone survey of 816 likely voters was conducted Wednesday to Sunday. Florida's early voting program was expanded after the botched presidential election in 2000. Officials hoped opening selected polling sites early would keep lines shorter on Election Day. Voting went smoothly at locations around the state Monday morning, said Florida Division of Elections spokesman Sterling Ivey. In the 2004 general election, 25 percent of Florida voters, or about 1.4 million people, voted early, he said. This is a huge surprise to me, as I had written off Davis recently due to his very low advertising budget. If he could pull off a win, it would be a MASSIVE upset, to say the least.
October 24, 200619 yr Its going to be closer than many think it is, but the Quinnipiac poll doesnt seem very reliable. The Quinnipiac polls have shown it being closer than the other polls and Davis has even lead in some of the Quinnipiac polls. Polls on Wiki
October 24, 200619 yr Herald/St. Pete Times Poll is more reliable IMO Isn't St. Pete Charlie Crists hometown?
October 24, 200619 yr Herald/St. Pete Times Poll is more reliable IMO What are they saying? They are polling on each candidate more in-depth. You have "who are you going to vote for" along with "ratings" and "name recognition" polls to help. They also have each issue seperately polled. Mason/Dixon shows the rift between Democrats on Davis. They show 20% of Dems going for Crist vs. 8% of GOPers for Davis. http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/15648866.htm
October 24, 200619 yr Isn't St. Pete Charlie Crists hometown? Crist is from St. Pete, but The St. Petersburg Times is considered a more left-leaning paper. The Tampa Tribune and The Miami Herald have both endorsed Mr. Crist.
October 24, 200619 yr Isn't St. Pete Charlie Crists hometown? Crist is from St. Pete, but The St. Petersburg Times is considered a more left-leaning paper. The Tampa Tribune and The Miami Herald have both endorsed Mr. Crist. Damn Davis cant get his hometown paper to sponser him. I still have faith tho!!
October 25, 200619 yr WPTV here in West Palm Beach aired a story a few nights ago where they did a local poll and surveyed I believe it was something like 1,000 local residents, I can't remember the number but something like 60% have never even heard of Jim Davis.
October 25, 200619 yr WPTV here in West Palm Beach aired a story a few nights ago where they did a local poll and surveyed I believe it was something like 1,000 local residents, I can't remember the number but something like 60% have never even heard of Jim Davis. Well, it's a good thing only about 20% of eligible voters tend to vote in the mid terms.
October 25, 200619 yr that debate was horrible. Both candidates dodged countless questions to push the same point repeatedly. No matter what was asked, it was Davis' $1 Billion cut vs Crist and the empty chair. These guys stand for more than that, and should let those watching just that they stand for.
October 25, 200619 yr Eh, the St. Pete Times is the more dominant paper in that region anyways. No Republican, could ever get the endorsement of the St. Pete Times. BTW, the Quinnipiac University Poll is about as good as asking the people on the bus what they think. Its methodology is laughable.
October 26, 200619 yr not that i care who wins i am not happy with either candidate but the this poll is the outlier , here are the polls since late aug Strategic Vision ® 10/20 - 10/22 1200 LV 51 42 5 Crist +9.0 Quinnipiac 10/18 - 10/22 816 LV 46 44 8 Crist +2.0 Cromer (D) 10/16 - 10/21 LV 54 36 -- Crist +18.0 Rasmussen 10/17 - 10/17 500 LV 46 41 13 Crist +5.0 Mason-Dixon 10/16 - 10/17 625 LV 50 39 9 Crist +11.0 Zogby Interactive* 10/10 - 10/16 1010 LV 50 41 -- Crist +9.0 SurveyUSA 10/07 - 10/09 514 LV 54 41 5 Crist +13.0 Quinnipiac 10/03 - 10/08 783 LV 53 43 3 Crist +10.0 Rasmussen 10/02 - 10/02 500 LV 55 40 4 Crist +15.0 Zogby 09/26 - 09/28 803 LV 51 30 16 Crist +21.0 McLaughlin & Associates ® 09/24 - 09/25 800 LV 51 37 12 Crist +14.0 Zogby Interactive* 09/19 - 09/25 50 37 13 Crist +13.0 Strategic Vision ® 09/22 - 09/24 1200 LV 50 40 8 Crist +10.0 Mason-Dixon 09/20 - 09/22 625 LV 51 36 11 Crist +15.0 Research 2000 09/18 - 09/20 600 LV 49 43 7 Crist +6.0 Rasmussen 09/19 - 09/19 500 LV 45 40 8 Crist +5.0 SurveyUSA 09/11 - 09/13 512 LV 49 41 8 Crist +8.0 Zogby Interactive* 08/29 - 09/05 1005 LV 51 36 13 Crist +15.
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