Posted on 06/04/2010 11:41:30 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, the only Republican U.S. Senate candidate in the state who could afford a significant television advertising campaign, has opened up a 15-point lead over her nearest opponent just days before Tuesday's primary, according to a Field Poll released today.
The first-time candidate, who campaigned up and down the state and was endorsed by former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, has the support of 37 percent of voters compared with 22 percent for former South Bay Rep. Tom Campbell - who led Fiorina by six points in a Field Poll in March.
Assemblyman Chuck DeVore, R-Irvine, more than doubled his support since March to 19 percent, but remained in third place, according to the poll.
Still, 20 percent of the likely GOP primary voters surveyed remained undecided - the largest group being voters under 40, who favor Campbell slightly over Fiorina.
Fiorina, who received $21 million from HP when the company fired her in 2005, has put $5.5 million of her own money into the race. Her personal wealth, coupled with her opponents' inability to raise enough money to compete, made a huge difference, analysts say.
From Jan. 1 to May 19, Fiorina spent $6.7 million to Campbell's $1.6 million and DeVore's $2 million, according to campaign finance records.
Fiorina's cash advantage enabled her to have TV commercials on the air since April 8 - and her overall support in the Field Poll increased from 22 percent in March.(continued)
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Carly is the stronger candidate to beat Boxer. She has a terrific bio, started as a secretary, worked herself up to CEO, beat breast cancer. Carly can call out Boxer and say things to her face that a man could never say/
I blame the California GOP and anyone else that has weighed in from national GOP climes.
Prediction, notwithstanding the recent gains in GOP registration, “Decline to state” voters will grow in the Golden State in the next couple of years.
I’ll disagree with your impression of her bio as will many employees (and a board of directors) at HP.
She is most certainly not a conservative and I find it very disheatening that anyone on FR would support her. Not saying you were doing that. Understand you were making an objective statement.
How long have you lived in California?
Interesting question in reply to that post but happy to answer it. California native.
As a native here of many decades and having worked for Reagan in his campaign when he first ran for Gov.
the demographics have chnged over the years and not for the best.
If Reagan was running today for Gov. he would not win.
I got robocalled by John Kyl tonight. Carly is who the Senate leadership wants
I can't disagree with you on that. In case it is not apparant, I am very disallusioned with the GOP, especially in California. The factional splits in the GOP, especially in the southern part of the state, are more damaging than just the negative ads they are throwing at each other in the primaries.
I’ll add by way of balance to my GOP negative rant that Daryl Issa does seem to pounding issues pretty hard.
You’re right...back then Reagan had the then up and coming boomers, and their entrepreneurship, to help him after Carter so completely messed up our economy with his Keynesian theories.
CA is a wholely owned subsidiary of the Unions...so is Oregon. WRT demographics...what sanctuary state hasn’t suffered for it?
Issa is good...very good...and there are a lot of young Republicans in leadership positions who are conservative. Will they “make their bones” this year? I certainly hope so!
Not saying the ads didn't help but the surge didn't start until After the Palin endorsement Still with 20% undecided its still anyone's ball game. But I don't see Devore catching fire in the last 4 days. I just hope whoever wins its not Campbell. I'll like Carly or Devore to take the win.
Ever wonder why a company would go half way around the world to produce, especially with a heavily automate assembly process? Of course you stated the answer already except that is not just California that is not business friendly.
Nobody can’t say that Devore didn’t have his chance. Perhaps it was a lack of money but I believe that he may be a victim of the Peter Principle: decent assemblyman but poor national candidate for the Senate. He just didn’t catch fire. This is the first poll ever that has shown Devore close to 20%.
And to only get 25% support of the Tea partiers to 42% for Fiorina really tells the real story of the Devore campaign. Chuck put in a lot of time and effort to court the TPM but when it is all said and done they appear to have bought Fiorina’s fiscal conservative message over Devore’s more national defense-social conservative message.
But make no mistake about it, without the deux ex machina presence of Sarah Palin, Campbell might have won the primary by Fiorina and Devore dividing the right of center vote. The Palin endorsement of Carly was a huge political game-changer. Five polls have confirmed this over the last 3-4 weeks since Palin’s endorsement on May 6th.
Chuck Devore's numbers appear to have INCREASED (slightly) since Governor Palin endorsed Fiorina.
If this is what passes for a conservative candidate in California, I’m glad as he## that I don’t live in that state.
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