As Connecticut’s U.S. Senate race took an increasingly testy edge, a new Quinnipiac University poll shows neither candidate holding an edge with voters entering October.
The poll also showed President Barack Obama with a commanding lead in Connecticut over Mitt Romney, with the poll conducted on the eve of the first presidential debate on Wednesday, Oct. 3.
In the Quinnipiac poll on the Senate race, Linda McMahon held a 1-point edge over U.S. Rep. Chris Murphy, with Quinnipiac surveying nearly 1,700 likely voters between Sept. 28 and Oct. 2, and assigning a 2.4 percent margin of error.
In contrast to the mostly civil debate exchanges between Obama and Romney, McMahon and Murphy have taken the gloves off in their own contest with a barrage of negative ads focused on McMahon’s record leading Stamford-based World Wrestling Entertainment Inc., and Murphy’s personal finances and his record supporting the Wall Street bailout.
“Connecticut voters like Linda McMahon more than U.S. Rep. Christopher Murphy, but the Democrat seems to be holding his own against the onslaught of negative advertising,” said Douglas Schwartz, director of the Quinnipiac University poll, in a written statement. “The images of both candidates have declined since August, as the campaign attacks have increased.”
President Barack Obama led Mitt Romney 54-42 percent on the Quinnipiac poll.
In Connecticut, Democrats appear to be in better shape financially these days than Republicans, at least according to the Quinnipiac poll ”“ 34 percent of Democrats opined the state’s economy is doing better, versus just 3 percent of Republicans saying so.
