New Maine Polls: Dems lead by double digits in house races but lag in Gov race lots of undecideds

[book_worm]

1st District:

The Maine Poll shows Pingree with a commanding 24-point lead over Republican challenger Dean Scontras in the race for the U.S. House seat Pingree won two years ago.

The telephone poll took place Monday evening among registered voters who had voted in the 2008 presidential election and said they were likely to vote in the upcoming election Nov. 2.

Of the 316 respondents who live in the district that includes the counties of Cumberland, York, Knox, Lincoln, Sagadahoc and most of Kennebec, 53 percent said they would vote for Pingree, a Democrat from the Penobscot Bay island of North Haven. Twenty-nine percent said they would vote for Scontras, a businessman from Eliot who grew up in Kittery and played for the 1989 and 1990 Black Bears. Seventeen percent were undecided.

http://www.pressherald.com/news/1st-district_2010-09-19.html

2nd District:

Second Congressional District Rep. Mike Michaud had a double-digit lead over Republican challenger Jason Levesque in polling conducted last week for The Maine Poll.

Another recent poll found the race to be more competitive. A survey released Sept. 9 by Public Policy Polling showed the Democrat with only a seven percentage-point lead over Levesque, 45-38, and the polling firm said that Michaud is "vastly under-performing" compared with his previous races.

In the MaineToday Media poll conducted last Monday, congressional district residents were asked who they would vote for if the election were held now, and 48 percent selected Michaud, compared with 28 percent for Levesque, a 35-year-old Auburn businessman. Despite Michaud's 20-point advantage, though, the remaining 28 percent of respondents either didn't know who they would vote for or declined to say.

The MaineToday Media telephone poll included 287 registered voters in the 2nd Congressional District. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus four percentage points at a 95 percent degree of confidence.
http://www.pressherald.com/news/2nd-district_2010-09-19.html

Governors Race:

A new independent poll on the Maine governor's race shows little movement from previous surveys, with Republican Paul LePage maintaining a sizable lead over his closest competitor, Democrat Elizabeth "Libby" Mitchell

The Maine Poll has 38 percent of respondents saying they will vote for LePage, followed by 25 percent for Mitchell. Unenrolled candidates Eliot Cutler, Shawn Moody and Kevin Scott follow with 11 percent, 4 percent and 1 percent, respectively.

There is at least one notable difference from past polls: 21 percent of those surveyed said they didn't know who they'd vote for.

"That suggests a good number of people who are out there to be grabbed," said Michael Franz, a professor of government at Bowdoin College.

http://www.pressherald.com/news/the-results_2010-09-19.html

[David__77]

1. That split on the left is a problem.

Someone should give way, and it's not clear to me who.

[NWHarkness]

3. "Cutler" is Mainish for "Nader"

Actually, that's unfair to Nader, who, although he was a knowing spoiler for Bush, at least never lobbied for the Chinese government.

[high density]

4. The more I learn about Cutler, the more I hate the guy

Independent my ass.

[NWHarkness]

6. I missed my chance

I was driving past his Bangor office a couple of weeks ago, and he stepped off the curb right in front of me. If I hadn't hit the brakes, I would have taken him out.

I hope I don't regret it.

[RBInMaine]

10. Cutler can't get above 11% or 12%, but those are moderates. He should get out.

[Davis_X_Machina]

14. Small state. Relatively cheap media...

...and some enormous egos. Maine is the perfect state for a vanity candidate. Everyone with a six-figure net worth looks in the mirror and sees the Next Angus King.

[spartan61]

2. I have been in Maine since May and I have not

seen any bumper stickers or yard signs for Mitchell. Everywhere I look I only see signs for LePage. Granted I am in the Waterville area where LePage was Mayor, but there must be some Democrats in the area. Now the only ads I am seeing on TV are for Lepage, too. Is Mitchell trying to lose this election?

[NWHarkness]

5. Mitchell is running as a Clean Elections candidate

Which is admirable, but allows LePage to greatly outspend her on signs, bumper stickers, etc.

[RBInMaine]

8. Bumper stickers have gone out to party volunteers first since they are scarce due to low funds. I

have one, and I have two lawn signs. The lawn signs are being distributed by the county party committees. Check with your county committee.

[RBInMaine]

9. Libby has had an ad up, and the Dem Gov, assn. has had an ad up. Low funds are the problem.

[Davis_X_Machina]

7. Maine has this long-standing dream....

...of a politics-without-politicians.

Perot finished ahead of Bush here in '92.
Two of our last five governors have been independents.
And Greens and independents have had some success running -- usually as spoilers, John Rensenbrink's '96 Green run is why we got stuck with Susie Creamcheese in the Senate originally.

Even the politicians take pains to not look or sound like politicians. George Mitchell got into politics via appointment, not election. Collins of course takes pains to not-orate. And our local Joe Biden, Joe Brennan, God bless him, a lifelong servant of the party, lost races because 'he sounds just like a politician'.

Cutler and his ilk are all cut from that same bolt of cloth. The Republicans seem always to profit from it, however.

[RBInMaine]

11. Please, get out there and WORK. Call, canvass, donate, letters to the ed., ANYTHING.

[RBInMaine]

12. Can't let the Tea Idiot LePage win. He's a whackjob and needs to be defined as such. Please help.

[RBInMaine]

13. The LARGE number of undecideds mean we can BEAT the TeaWhacko LePage. PLEASE HELP.