Florida Governor: Crist (R) Lead Widens (Crist 49% (R), Davis (D) 35%)

Republican Attorney General Charlie Crist has opened a double digit lead in the race to succeed Governor Jeb Bush, leading Democratic Congressman Jim Davis 49% to 35% in our latest survey. In May, Crist led Davis 44% to 39%.

Both men are front-runners in their primary contests, which will be decided on September 5.

Crist recently picked up an endorsement from Republican Senator Mel Martinez, the first Cuban-American elected to the U.S. Senate. The Crist campaign hopes will help him pick up primary votes among Hispanics.

Republican Tom Gallagher also leads Davis, although by the narrower margin of 43% to 39%. Democrat Rod Smith, for his part, trails Gallagher by eight points, Crist by ten points.

The race for Governor remains far more competitive than the Senate campaign. Senator Bill Nelson continues to dominate Republican Katherine Harris in that match-up.

Crist is the best-known of the candidates, with only 13% telling us they're "not sure" what to think of him. Eighteen percent (18%) are "not sure" of Gallagher. For the Democrats, the numbers are 29% for Davis, 28% for Smith.

By a narrow margin, Florida prefers to see a Democrat rather than a Republican President elected in 2008, at least when no names are mentioned. But, following a trend we've seen in other states, they tend to view specific Republicans more favorably than Democrats when considering a small group of likely presidential candidates.

Of the four—Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Rudy Giuliani, and Al Gore—former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani is most popular among Florida voters, with 70% viewing him favorably, 42% "very" favorably.

I just hope a certain Senate candidate won't have any averse efect on him.

I think we all are concerned about that. Two problems:
1. The Senate race is will be at the top of the ballot (the Governor's race will be second). There is some concern that folks who are backlashing on the Senate race will simply continue down the ballot on the democrat side.
2. It appears that the democrats are successfully using the unpopular Harris candidacy to help mobilize their potential voters in Florida. While the Governor's race is an interesting one, and there are some closely contested Congressional races, it's doubtful that any of those races would be the lightening rod to bring the democrats and independents to the polls that the Senate race will be, assuming Katherine Harris is the republican nominee following the primary.

Most folks don't realize (or don't consider) that fully 20% of all registered voters in Florida are registered, not as democrats or republicans, but rather, as independents or as members of another political party (like Green or Constitutional, etc.).

The most recent poll numbers show that, among registered Florida voters, only 20% of those polled actually 'approve' of Katherine Harris, while 58% 'disapprove', and 22% are 'undecided'. In my opinion, when the number of people who are indifferent about a candidate outnumbers the number of people who actually like the candidate--and the number of people who like the candidate plus the number who are indifferent together doesn't come close to the number of those who dislike the candidate, then it's foolish to pretend that candidate is a)going to win the seat they are running for, or b)not going to be a detriment to the party of which they are a representative (when they are running for statewide office).

Got any proof for any of those claims in your post #18, or are you just once again stating your negative comments flatly, hoping that everyone who reads them will just accept them without question?

The fact that you are attempting to hijack a column on Charlie Crist's gubernatorial campaign and turn it into another "let's kick Harris while we think she's down" thread speaks volumes.

A newbie who's also immediately and continually jumping into the "defeat Harris" column with both feet also tells us things.

Florida Freeper

One can chose to drink the cool-aid of "drive-by" L.S.M.'s screwed polls about Ms. Kathrine Harris!??!
Today's Polls are mostly created by the L.S.M. in order to become their editorals for that particular issue. You can create polls to get the result that you WISH to be the truth, and since 1994 those polls have left the libs in total shock every time they have lost elections!
We have a bunch of "so-called" Freepers keyboard commandos drinking the same lib cool-aid trying to further the "ass-naut" cadet bill nelson's campaign for free on the conservative site!!

Typically, we just saw the result yesterday out in California, where the "drive-by" media constantly have touted that the Republicans will loose the house, because of their propaganda of the busby election!!!

FRIDAY NEWS UPDATE.
CALIFORNIA. What only two years ago seemed impossible in CD-50 now seems within reach for retired professor Francine Busby (D). As the '04 Dem nominee, Busby lost to now-imprisoned former Congressman Duke Cunningham by a 58% to 37% vote. With the special election for Cunningham's vacant seat less than two weeks away, another independent poll shows Busby inching closer to the 50% mark required for an outright win in the crowded, multi-party April 11 primary. The new KGTV-TV/SurveyUSA poll places Busby at 45% -- far ahead of any of her 17 opponents. Wealthy businessman Eric Roach (R) was second with 14%, followed by former State Assemblyman Howard Kaloogian (R) at 12%, former Congressman Brian Bilbray (R) had 10%, State Senator Bill Morrow (R) and manufacturing executive Alan Uke (R) had 5% apiece, and a combined total of 6% back other candidates. Democrats have solidly rallied behind Busby, while the Republicans are engaged in a very nasty, divisive battle pitting social conservative candidates versus GOP centrist hopefuls. Busby, a local school board member, is positioning herself as a political moderate and an alternative to a culture of corruption in DC. While it still seems highly unlikely Busby will be able to secure an absolute majority in the primary, she is certain to finish far ahead of the rest of the field. If no one secures a majority, a run-off will take place June 6.
Here’s from busby’s website;

As of today, the final count is 49.51% (64,554) Bilbray, 45.15% (59,021) Busby with 35,455 provisional and absentee ballots county-wide still to uncounted.
I recieved 57% of total registered Democrats. Bilbray recieved 42% of registered Republicans. We did a better job getting our voters out. Total turnout was 130,416 or 37%.

Because of our great Florida grass root movement, I'm very confident that the next Jr. Senator for Florida's name is KATHRINE HARRIS.
She will be a success like the Discoery's lift-off from the Kennedy Spacecenter in Cape Canaveral, FLORIDA a couple minutes ago.

HAPPY 4TH. JULY TO ALL TRUE FREEPERS!!!

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