June 09, 2006 08:00 AM UTC

CD-7 Poll Has Lamm Ahead

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• by: Colorado Pols

A 9News/SurveyUSA poll shows Peggy Lamm ahead of fellow Democrats Ed Perlmutter and Herb Rubenstein, a revelation which may cause Perlmutter’s campaign headquarters to explode given his staff’s weird obsession with continually discussing past polls. From 9News:

The phone poll of 513 registered voters in the 7th CD asked about whether their opinion of the candidates was favorable, unfavorable, neutral or if they were not familiar with the candidate. No party affiliation was affixed to each candidate.

In the three-way Democratic primary, former State Representative Peggy Lamm had the highest favorability rating (24 percent) but also the highest unfavorability rating (19 percent). Twenty-nine percent were neutral on her candidacy. Lamm’s rating of 28 percent who were unfamiliar with her was the lowest of the three Democrats.

Those polled gave former State Senator Ed Perlmutter a 12 percent favorable rating, 15 percent unfavorable, 31 percent were neutral and 42 percent were unfamiliar.

Attorney Herb Rubenstein received a 4 percent favorable rating, 11 percent unfavorable, 29 percent neutral and 56 percent did not know him. The Democratic primary is Tuesday, August 8.

The lone Republican in the race, former Colorado Department of Higher Education chief Rick O’Donnell had 7 percent give him a favorable rating, 12 percent an unfavorable rating, 28 percent were neutral and 53 percent did not know him well enough to register an opinion.

And now for the spin; here’s how Lamm and Perlmutter reacted…

From Perlmutter’s campaign:

Tonight 9news released a SurveyUSA News poll of general election voters that clearly reflects people think they are voting for Dottie Lamm and when they discover otherwise they will vote accordingly. Unlike Dottie, Peggy Lamm supported Bill Owens for Governor. When Democrats learn this, her support evaporates.

However, every poll we have seen tells us that Americans want a change. A change from the culture of corruption that grips our nation?s Capitol, change from the?misguided leadership in Iraq and a change from the lack of leadership at home. Ed Perlmutter is a Democrat you can count on who has a record of achievement in the State Senate that sets him apart as the one candidate who can deliver a victory for change in November!

From Lamm’s campaign:

A new poll of registered voters in the 7th Congressional District conducted for KUSA TV-9 shows Peggy Lamm is leading all 7th District candidates in name recognition and favorability.According to the poll, Lamm is the only candidate in the race who has higher favorables than negatives. The KUSA poll showed Lamm with 72 percent name recognition in the district and the highest positive ratings of any candidate in the 7th District race.? Lamm is viewed positively by 24 percent of voters, with 19 percent unfavorable and 29 percent neutral.
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Lamm leads Republican Rick O’Donnell by significant margins in all categories. More immediately relevant, though, is Lamm?s standing among Democrats compared to her opponents. Lamm is viewed positively by 28 percent of Democrats who were polled and has a +11 advantage in favorability-to-unfavorability.

Ed Perlmutter, despite recent claims of being the frontrunner, came up short with 15 percent favorable and 15 percent unfavorable among Democrats. Only 29 percent of Democrats were unfamiliar with Lamm, while 43 percent of Democrats had never heard of Perlmutter.

The poll was more bad news for Perlmutter, as it came after Perlmutter dropped his campaign?s plans of challenging Lamm?s signatures which placed her on the ballot.?

?This is just more evidence that Peggy is leading the pack in the Democratic primary and has the best chance to win the 7th District in November,? said Lamm Campaign Director Jim Merlino.? ?The people of the 7th District know Peggy?s positive record on issues like the CU recruiting scandal investigation and leading the charge to pass the Colorado Do-Not-Call List, while other candidates are largely unknown.?

A February survey of 400 likely primary voters conducted by RBI Strategy and Research showed Lamm holding a double-digit lead over her competitors in the Democratic primary for the 7th Congressional District.

In the three-way match-up, Peggy Lamm was favored by 33% of likely voters, compared to 17% for Ed Perlmutter and 1% for Herb Rubenstein. When ?leaners? were included, Lamm?s lead over Perlmutter grew to 21%.