The newest poll from Quinnipiac University in the race for U.S. Senate in Florida shows incumbent Bill Nelson holding a 6-point lead over his Republican opponent, Gov. Rick Scott, despite the exposure Scott has received over the past two weeks guiding the state’s response and recovery to Hurricane Michael.
The survey shows Nelson receiving the support of 52 percent of the voters polled while Scott received 46 percent. The margin is down 1 percent from the last survey conducted by Quinnipiac poll take a month ago.
Only 2 percent of Florida likely voters remain undecided. The survey also shows that just 4 percent of those who name a candidate say they might change their mind in the next 15 days.
Nelson’s support is coming mainly from women, black, Hispanic and independent voters.
“At this point, Sen. Nelson’s six-point overall lead is built on his large margin among independent voters, 60 – 38 percent,” said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll. If that margin holds up, the senator will be difficult to beat. Moreover, Sen. Nelson’s 20-point advantage among women is twice Gov. Scott’s 10-point edge among men.
“Nelson is just better liked. Florida likely voters view him favorably by 10 percentage points, and see Gov. Scott unfavorably by five points,” Brown added.
Florida likely voters give Nelson a 51 – 41 percent favorability rating, while Scott received a negative 45 – 50 percent rating.
In addition to holding a 22-point lead among independents, Nelson also holds a 20-point lead among women, a 20-point lead among Hispanic voters and a 91-point lead among black voters.
Scott holds a 9-point lead with white voters.
The Quinnipiac survey also polled President Donald Trump’s job approval among the surveyed voters. It shows Trump receiving a negative 46 – 51 rating, which is a 5-point improvement over what he received a month ago.
Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,161 Florida likely voters from October 17 – 21. The poll has amargin of error of +/- 3.5 percentage points, including the design effect. They survey uses random digit dialing with live interviewers calling landlines and cell phones.