Posted on 06/07/2010 7:58:14 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Nikki Haley hasn't suffered any damage whatsoever after accusations of multiple extramarital affairs and is headed for an easy first place finish in Tuesday's Republican primary for Governor of South Carolina.
Haley has a 20 point lead, getting 43% of the vote. Gresham Barrett looks like the favorite for the second runoff spot. He's at 23%, followed by Henry McMaster at 16%, and Andre Bauer at 12%.
Two weeks ago Haley held a 21 point lead in the race. Since then she's gained 4 points, Barrett's standing has improved by 7, McMaster's has dropped by a couple points, and Bauer's gone down a single point.
Only 13% of voters believe the allegations about Haley's marital infidelity. 54% flat out do not believe them and 33% are unsure. Haley will, however, be in trouble with voters if they ever are proven. In that case 42% think she should drop out of the race.
At +35 (58/23) Haley's favorability is nearly identical to its +34 standing from two weeks ago. Barrett has seen a large gain on that front over the last two weeks from +10 to +25 (44/19). McMaster and Bauer aren't making any progress on that front. The Attorney General has actually dropped from +21 to +17 (45/28). The Lieutenant Governor continues to be highly unpopular even with his own party's voters. He's at -23 (29/52), the same as his standing a couple weeks ago.
A runoff between Haley and Barrett appears to be the most likely outcome right now. Barrett narrows the gap in such a contest because supporters of McMaster and Bauer say they would support him 45-30 over Haley in a head to head. Nevertheless Haley still leads Barrett 51-35 overall.
Haley's support is pretty universal. She gets 43% with both moderates and conservatives, 45% in the Low Country, 44% in the Midlands, and 40% in the Upstate. At this point the chances of her winning an outright majority and avoiding a runoff appear to be better than the ones of her not finishing first.
If Mark Sanford confesses to having had a fling with Nikki, we’ll know the fix is in.
Gee, 52% finding Lt. Gov. Rudolf Hess unpopular. Color me totally unsurprised.
What’s Andre going to do after he leaves office? My personal suggestion would be to indulge that lead foot of his and see if some NASCAR truck series team has an opening for a driver.
}:-)4
Good news. Seems the smears by the slimey followers of the huckster failed. They truely are a vile bunch.
Love it, this party needs more “Mama Grizzlies” like Palin and Bachmann (sp?)!
I can hardly wait until tomorrow to cast my vote for her.
It’s nice to see a candidate survive the despicable attacks launched by the left. I suspect Nikki Haley faced lies invented specifically to manipulate our elections, and I’m glad that baseless charges have lost their effectiveness.
Honestly, we were stunned over the political ads and signs, and amazed at the many houses and cars we saw flying Gadsden and pro-military flags / bumper stickers. And those "In God We Trust" license plates! It's like we died and went to conservative Heaven! ;-)
I would welcome any information/comments about the Charleston, SC area, but I have a question about the voting districts: Is Charleston within 'RAT James Clyburn's 6th district, but the surrounding areas are within the 1st Congressional district? (Rep. Henry Brown, R-SC)
Besides Charleston, we particularly loved the towns of Sullivan's Island, Isle of Palms, Mt. Pleasant, Folly Beach and James Island. It was confusing to me which town/area was in which voting district though.
We found out the hard way that Kiawah Island was a private island... we were refused entrance at the gate, LOL. What's the deal with Kiawah Island? Rich and exclusive? Just curious...
We probably can't leave CT for a few years, but we hope to return to SC in a few months (perhaps in the fall) to investigate further... and to make sure it wasn't all just a dream! ;-)
Nikki Haley Ping
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I moved here in 2003. After driving all over this beautiful state, I chose Akien County. Just over the Savannah River from Augusta, GA.
Moved here from Memphis TN to retire 5 years ago, still in love with the place (Sun City, Hilton Head, SC). C'mon down!
Hi Nutmeg:
I moved to SC from my native NC in 1991, and save for four years wandering in the wilderness of Tennessee due to job opportunities, I have lived here since. My home is in the Midlands near Columbia, but I, too, LOVE Charleston.
The congressional districts have been so gerrymandered over the decades by Democrats to make sure they kept some districts and had at least one minority representative (can you say “Clyburn?”) that it’s hard to know when you are in one and out of another. I believe someone has already posted the contortions that pass for districts now in SC.
What I’ve found is that most folks here are solid, Conservative citizens who love their country and believe in the vision of the Founders. They are patriotic, and they are tired of Washington, DC trying to run every aspect of their lives. They’re also tired of the games that go on in the State Capital of Columbia, too. Our primaries are today, and we’re looking with anticipation for big changes.
The area if Mt. Pleasant, Isle of Palms and Sullivan’s Island is my personal favorite down on the coast around Charleston. I’ve stayed down in that area dozens of times and can make recommendations if you decide to make a visit down there. I’d probably move down there if I could get a job and my wife wouldn’t divorce me lol
I wish you well, and hope you can come down and enjoy some time in South Carolina!
To put it mildly.
If she does not get 50 percent, she will have to go through another 2 weeks of campaigning against the Republican second place.
Thank you so much for those links and information about the South Carolina midlands and upstate areas. My husband and I will definitely have to explore more of SC... I hope sooner rather than later. ;-)
Congratulations on what looks to be a win by Nikki Haley... she looks to be an exciting candidate for governor! We saw many of her political signs last week, but didn't know anything about her. We'll definitely be following her race through November.
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