August 19, 2010 - Sink Inching Up In Close Florida Gov Race, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Crist Leads Three-Way Senate Race Word format Apparently bolstered by the civil war for the Republican nomination for Governor in Florida, State Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink, the Democrat, is on the plus side of very close races over either Republican candidate, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. She gets 31 percent to State Attorney General Bill McCollum's 29 percent. Sink gets 33 percent to businessman Rick Scott's 29 percent. In either matchup, independent candidate Bud Chiles gets 12 percent and about 20 percent of voters are undecided. Scott was at 29 percent to Sink's 27 percent in a July 30 poll by the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University and McCollum had 27 percent to Sink's 26 percent. In the U.S. Senate race, Gov. Charlie Crist, running as an independent, leads Republican Marco Rubio 39 - 32 percent, with U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek getting 16 percent, if he wins the Democratic nomination. If Jeff Greene gets the Democratic nod, he gets 15 percent to Crist's 40 percent and Rubio's 32 percent. President Barack Obama has a split 47 - 47 percent job approval rating, compared to a negative 46 - 50 percent approval July 30 and the President's best score in Florida since April. "Watching television must have been an enjoyable experience for Florida CFO Alex Sink over the last few months, as she watched Attorney General Bill McCollum and Rick Scott tear into each other with attack ads. Although she trailed either GOP competitor by eight or nine points in June, she has been the unintended beneficiary of the heavy volume of negative television ads her potential November opponents launched against each other," said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. "She has been able to sit back and save her money for the November election, while whoever wins the Republican primary will have substantial work to do healing wounds within his own party and cleaning up his image," Brown added. Sink's favorability numbers have hardly moved in the last two months, going from 28 - 14 percent favorable on June 9 to 30 - 15 percent favorable today, with 53 percent who don't know enough about her to form an opinion. "Once the primary is over, the race for Governor will be one to define Alex Sink for the majority of Floridians who don't know enough about her to have an opinion. McCollum, who leads the GOP primary race, has seen his favorable/unfavorable ratio sink from 37 - 29 percent favorable among all registered voters to a negative 33 - 34 percent. Scott's has dropped from 31 - 22 percent favorable in June to a negative 28 - 40 percent today. "At this point it's not clear whether independent Bud Chiles will be a force in November. His numbers have ticked down since his announcement, but he is getting one in eight votes and that is nothing to sneeze at," said Brown. In the Senate race against Rubio and Meek, Crist gets 45 percent of the Democrats - more than Meek's 36 percent - and 50 percent of the independent voters. Against Greene, Crist gets 51 percent of the Democrats to Greene's 31 percent, and 48 percent of independent voters. "Crist is getting more support from Democrats than either Greene or Meek. The key for Crist will be whether he can hold this many Democrats once the party's nomination is settled and keep his half of the independent voters," said Brown. "Crist's edge in the Senate race is built on the very favorable impression Floridians have of his performance as Governor. They approve 56 - 35 percent of how he is leading the state, an impressive figure at a time when voters in many states seem to be taking out their economic frustrations on their governors," said Brown. Florida voters disapprove 30 - 22 percent of U.S. Sen. George LeMieux, whose seat Crist is trying to fill, while Sen. Bill Nelson has a 45 - 33 percent approval rating. From August 11 - 16, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,096 Florida voters with a margin of error of +/- 3 percentage points. The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public opinion surveys in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio and the nation as a public service and for research. For more data or RSS feed - http://www.quinnipiac.edu/polling.xml, or call (203) 582-5201. 1. If the 2010 election for Governor were being held today and the candidates were Alex Sink the Democrat, Bill McCollum the Republican and Bud Chiles running as an independent candidate, for whom would you vote? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Sink 31% 7% 61% 25% 32% 29% 13% McCollum 29 63 8 21 34 24 42 Chiles 12 8 9 20 11 13 13 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 2 2 2 2 1 2 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 5 5 3 5 5 5 6 DK/NA 21 16 17 27 17 26 25 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Sink 25% 34% 32% 22% 33% McCollum 35 30 28 28 25 Chiles 10 10 16 11 12 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 1 3 3 2 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 6 8 3 11 3 DK/NA 24 18 18 26 24 TREND: If the 2010 election for Governor were being held today and the candidates were Alex Sink the Democrat, Bill McCollum the Republican and Bud Chiles running as an independent candidate, for whom would you vote? Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 2010 2010 2010 Sink 31 26 25 McCollum 29 27 33 Chiles 12 14 19 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 2 2 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 5 4 3 DK/NA 21 27 19 2. If the 2010 election for Governor were being held today and the candidates were Alex Sink the Democrat, Rick Scott the Republican and Bud Chiles running as an independent candidate, for whom would you vote? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Sink 33% 10% 63% 26% 32% 33% 16% Scott 29 63 6 24 34 25 39 Chiles 12 7 13 16 12 12 11 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 2 1 1 1 2 2 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 4 3 3 4 4 4 4 DK/NA 20 15 14 29 17 23 27 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Sink 28% 35% 33% 21% 40% Scott 35 29 31 38 21 Chiles 10 11 18 9 9 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 2 - 1 2 2 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 5 6 2 4 4 DK/NA 21 18 16 26 23 TREND: If the 2010 election for Governor were being held today and the candidates were Alex Sink the Democrat, Rick Scott the Republican and Bud Chiles running as an independent candidate, for whom would you vote? Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 2010 2010 2010 Sink 33 27 26 Scott 29 29 35 Chiles 12 14 13 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 2 - WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 4 3 2 DK/NA 20 26 23 3. If the 2010 election for United States Senator were being held today and the candidates were Kendrick Meek the Democrat, Marco Rubio the Republican and Charlie Crist running as an independent candidate, for whom would you vote? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Meek 16% 1% 36% 10% 12% 19% 8% Rubio 32 68 6 25 39 25 51 Crist 39 22 45 50 39 40 27 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 - 2 - - 1 - WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 3 1 3 3 3 3 3 DK/NA 10 7 8 12 7 12 11 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Meek 16% 11% 16% 9% 21% Rubio 35 35 35 40 21 Crist 34 40 36 39 46 SMONE ELSE(VOL) - 1 1 - 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 3 6 1 2 2 DK/NA 12 8 12 9 8 TREND: If the 2010 election for United States Senator were being held today and the candidates were Kendrick Meek the Democrat, Marco Rubio the Republican, and Charlie Crist running as an independent candidate, for whom would you vote? Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 Apr 15 2010 2010 2010 2010 Meek 16 13 17 24 Rubio 32 33 33 30 Crist 39 39 37 32 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 1 - - WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 3 1 1 1 DK/NA 10 14 11 13 4. If the 2010 election for United States Senator were being held today and the candidates were Jeff Greene the Democrat, Marco Rubio the Republican and Charlie Crist running as an independent candidate, for whom would you vote? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Greene 15% 4% 31% 10% 13% 17% 13% Rubio 32 68 5 27 38 26 53 Crist 40 21 51 48 39 42 26 SMONE ELSE(VOL) - - 1 - - 1 - WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 3 - 3 2 3 2 1 DK/NA 10 6 9 13 8 12 7 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Greene 13% 14% 13% 12% 19% Rubio 35 32 36 39 22 Crist 35 42 36 40 48 SMONE ELSE(VOL) - 1 1 - - WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 3 5 2 - 2 DK/NA 15 6 11 10 8 TREND: If the 2010 election for United States Senator were being held today and the candidates were Jeff Greene the Democrat, Marco Rubio the Republican, and Charlie Crist running as an independent candidate, for whom would you vote? Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 2010 2010 2010 Greene 15 17 14 Rubio 32 32 33 Crist 40 37 40 SMONE ELSE(VOL) - - 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 3 1 1 DK/NA 10 12 11 5. Is your opinion of - Kendrick Meek favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Favorable 24% 6% 46% 21% 23% 25% 14% Unfavorable 25 42 15 21 30 21 35 Hvn't hrd enough 48 50 38 54 44 52 50 REFUSED 3 2 1 4 4 2 1 TREND: Is your opinion of Kendrick Meek favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? FAVORABLE..... High Low Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 Apr 15 Jan 26 Aug 19 Apr 16 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2009 Favorable 24 17 17 18 18 24 11 Unfavorable 25 17 13 8 8 25 6 Hvn't hrd enough 48 64 69 73 72 48 82 REFUSED 3 2 1 1 1 3 1 6. Is your opinion of - Jeff Greene favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Favorable 18% 14% 24% 18% 17% 20% 20% Unfavorable 31 35 32 26 33 30 27 Hvn't hrd enough 48 49 41 54 47 49 50 REFUSED 2 2 2 2 3 2 3 TREND: Is your opinion of Jeff Greene favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 2010 2010 2010 Favorable 18 20 11 Unfavorable 31 15 11 Hvn't hrd enough 48 64 77 REFUSED 2 2 1 7. Is your opinion of - Maurice Ferre favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Favorable 7% 6% 8% 8% 7% 7% 4% Unfavorable 9 8 11 7 10 8 11 Hvn't hrd enough 83 85 79 84 81 84 85 REFUSED 1 1 2 1 2 1 1 TREND: Is your opinion of Maurice Ferre favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? Aug 19 Jun 9 2010 2010 Favorable 7 8 Unfavorable 9 6 Hvn't hrd enough 83 84 REFUSED 1 2 8. Is your opinion of - Marco Rubio, favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Favorable 35% 65% 12% 33% 39% 31% 57% Unfavorable 28 11 47 26 29 28 14 Hvn't hrd enough 34 24 38 40 29 39 27 REFUSED 2 1 2 1 2 2 2 TREND: Is your opinion of Marco Rubio favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? (*High also 36% Apr 2010) FAVORABLE..... High Low Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 Apr 15 Jan 26 Jun 9 Apr 16 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010* 2009 Favorable 35 35 36 36 32 36 10 Unfavorable 28 24 28 22 14 28 11 Hvn't hrd enough 34 38 34 41 53 34 78 REFUSED 2 3 2 1 1 2 2 9. Is your opinion of - Charlie Crist favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Favorable 53% 32% 72% 55% 53% 53% 38% Unfavorable 33 55 16 28 34 31 46 Hvn't hrd enough 10 11 7 14 9 12 12 REFUSED 4 3 5 3 4 5 3 TREND: Is your opinion of Charlie Crist favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? FAVORABLE..... High Low Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 Apr 15 Jan 26 Feb 19 Apr 15 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2009 2010 Favorable 53 49 52 48 52 68 48 Unfavorable 33 35 33 35 36 21 35 Hvn't hrd enough 10 13 11 13 8 9 13 REFUSED 4 3 3 3 3 3 3 10. Is your opinion of - Bill McCollum favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Favorable 33% 49% 16% 34% 33% 32% 41% Unfavorable 43 35 55 38 45 41 37 Hvn't hrd enough 21 15 22 27 19 23 21 REFUSED 3 1 7 2 4 3 - TREND: Is your opinion of Bill McCollum favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? FAVORABLE..... High Low Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 Apr 19 Jan 27 Aug 19 Jul 30 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2009 2010 Favorable 33 27 37 38 35 42 27 Unfavorable 43 43 29 18 15 13 43 Hvn't hrd enough 21 26 32 41 48 43 26 REFUSED 3 4 2 2 2 2 4 11. Is your opinion of - Alex Sink favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about her? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Favorable 30% 15% 48% 28% 31% 30% 19% Unfavorable 15 27 7 11 15 14 23 Hvn't hrd enough 53 56 44 59 50 56 57 REFUSED 2 2 1 2 4 1 1 TREND: Is your opinion of Alex Sink favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about her? FAVORABLE..... High Low Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 Apr 19 Jan 27 Aug 19 Apr 19 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 Favorable 30 25 28 22 24 30 22 Unfavorable 15 15 14 15 8 15 15 Hvn't hrd enough 53 58 56 61 68 53 61 REFUSED 2 2 2 2 1 2 2 12. Is your opinion of - Rick Scott favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Favorable 28% 48% 11% 27% 30% 25% 33% Unfavorable 40 31 49 38 37 42 35 Hvn't hrd enough 30 20 36 35 30 31 29 REFUSED 2 1 4 1 2 2 2 TREND: Is your opinion of Rick Scott favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 2010 2010 2010 Favorable 28 29 31 Unfavorable 40 30 22 Hvn't hrd enough 30 38 46 REFUSED 2 2 1 13. Is your opinion of - Bud Chiles favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Favorable 15% 9% 20% 17% 17% 14% 15% Unfavorable 12 16 7 12 11 12 15 Hvn't hrd enough 70 73 69 69 68 72 66 REFUSED 3 2 3 2 4 2 4 TREND: Is your opinion of Bud Chiles favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 2010 2010 2010 Favorable 15 15 10 Unfavorable 12 10 7 Hvn't hrd enough 70 73 81 REFUSED 3 2 2 14. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Charlie Crist is handling his job as Governor? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Approve 56% 39% 68% 62% 57% 55% 46% Disapprove 35 52 24 28 35 34 47 DK/NA 10 9 8 10 8 11 7 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Approve 50% 59% 50% 58% 62% Disapprove 36 35 41 38 26 DK/NA 14 6 9 4 11 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Charlie Crist is handling his job as Governor? (*High approve also 73% Mar 2007) APPROVE....... DIS.... High Low High Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 Apr 15 Jul 19 Apr 15 Apr 15 2010 2010 2010 2010 2007* 2010 2010 Approve 56 53 57 49 73 49 49 Disapprove 35 37 35 39 11 39 39 DK/NA 10 10 8 12 16 12 12 15. Do you approve or disapprove of the way the state legislature is handling its job? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Approve 30% 37% 24% 32% 31% 29% 32% Disapprove 56 50 58 57 57 54 52 DK/NA 14 13 18 11 12 17 15 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way the state legislature is handling its job? (*Low Approve also 30% Jul 2010, Jun 2010) APPROVE....... DIS... High Low High Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 Apr 19 Sep 23 Aug 19 Aug 19 2010 2010 2010 2010 2004 2010* 2010 Approve 30 30 30 32 51 30 30 Disapprove 56 54 53 51 34 56 56 DK/NA 14 17 18 17 15 14 14 16. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Bill Nelson is handling his job as United States Senator? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Approve 45% 39% 53% 46% 44% 46% 39% Disapprove 33 45 24 30 42 25 39 DK/NA 22 16 23 24 15 29 23 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Bill Nelson is handling his job as United States Senator? APPROVE....... DIS.... High Low High Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 Apr 15 Feb 6 Aug 12 Aug 19 2010 2010 2010 2010 2007 2004 2010 Approve 45 46 47 43 54 42 45 Disapprove 33 30 31 30 18 18 33 DK/NA 22 24 22 26 28 40 22 17. Do you approve or disapprove of the way George LeMieux is handling his job as United States Senator? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Approve 22% 32% 16% 21% 28% 17% 26% Disapprove 30 24 37 29 33 27 27 DK/NA 48 44 47 50 39 56 48 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way George LeMieux is handling his job as United States Senator? Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 Apr 15 Jan 26 Oct 21 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2009 Approve 22 21 21 20 21 16 Disapprove 30 25 25 21 21 18 DK/NA 48 54 54 59 58 66 18. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Bill McCollum is handling his job as Florida's Attorney General? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Approve 46% 56% 38% 48% 51% 42% 50% Disapprove 38 32 44 37 36 40 33 DK/NA 16 12 19 15 13 19 17 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Bill McCollum is handling his job as Florida's Attorney General? APPROVE....... High Low Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 Apr 19 Jan 27 Jan 27 Jul 30 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 Approve 46 43 50 51 56 56 43 Disapprove 38 39 28 25 20 20 39 DK/NA 16 18 22 24 24 24 18 19. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Alex Sink is handling her job as Florida's chief financial officer? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Approve 45% 38% 58% 43% 48% 43% 42% Disapprove 25 33 15 29 26 25 28 DK/NA 29 28 27 28 26 32 30 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Alex Sink is handling her job as Florida's Chief Financial Officer? APPROVE....... High Low Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 Apr 19 Jan 27 Aug 19 Feb 18 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2009 Approve 45 41 42 39 39 45 32 Disapprove 25 23 25 26 22 25 22 DK/NA 29 36 33 35 40 29 46 20. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as president? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Approve 47% 15% 84% 44% 47% 48% 25% Disapprove 47 82 12 49 48 47 69 DK/NA 5 3 4 7 5 6 6 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as President? APPROVE....... High Low Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 Apr 19 Jan 26 Feb 19 Jun 9 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2009 2010 Approve 47 46 40 50 45 64 40 Disapprove 47 50 54 45 49 23 54 DK/NA 5 4 6 5 6 13 6 21. Do you approve or disapprove of the federal health care overhaul? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Approve 35% 9% 61% 33% 34% 36% 17% Disapprove 56 87 26 57 56 56 77 DK/NA 9 4 13 10 10 8 6 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the federal health care overhaul? Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 9 2010 2010 2010 Approve 35 36 34 Disapprove 56 53 56 DK/NA 9 11 10 22. Do you think the U.S. is doing the right thing by fighting the war in Afghanistan now, or should the U.S. not be involved in Afghanistan now? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Right thing 43% 63% 27% 42% 48% 39% 55% Shld't be invl 49 29 67 50 46 53 35 DK/NA 7 7 6 8 7 8 9
