Community Corner

Booker Crushing Competition In Latest Quinnipiac Poll

Booker may as well start looking for a Washington apartment, pollster says.

With less than a week from the special U.S. Senate primary, Newark Mayor Cory Booker looks to be a shoo-in for the Democratic nomination while the GOP’s Steve Lonegan looks to be his likely competition, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll.

Booker claims 54 percent of likely Democratic primary voters in the latest poll released Wednesday, maintaining a nearly 40-point lead over his nearest competitor.

Lonegan, the former mayor of Bogota, leads his competitor, Somerset County physician Alieta Eck, by more than 60 percentage points.

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In the general election, Booker tops Lonegan 54 to 29 percent among registered voters.

"Unless the sky falls, Newark Mayor Cory Booker can start looking for a Washington apartment,’’ said Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. “He dominates both the Democratic primary and a general election against Steve Lonegan."

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Rounding out the Democratic field, U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone polled at 17 percent of likely voters. U.S. Rep. Rush Holt collected 15 percent and 5 percent went for state Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver. Only 8 percent of voters remain undecided, according to the poll.

A total of 65 percent of likely Democratic primary voters, including 66 percent of Booker backers, say they definitely will vote for the candidate they have named, the poll says.

The percentage of difference among the Democratic candidates is largely unchanged since the last Quinnipiac poll, released July 17.

Among likely Republican primary voters, Steve Lonegan beats Alieta Eck 74-10 percent, with 13 percent undecided, the poll says.

"No one knows Alieta Eck,” Carroll said. “August 13 looks like an easy day for Lonegan." 

There is little or no gender gap in any of the election matchups in New Jersey, according to the poll.

In the general election, Republicans back Lonegan 68 to 18 percent, while Booker leads among every other group and in every region of the state, ranging from a 46 to 38 percent lead among voters at the Shore to 72 to 14 percent among voters in urban areas, the poll says.

Booker tops Lonegan 81 to 5 percent among black voters; 61 to 12 percent among Hispanic voters and 48 to 35 percent among white voters. He also leads among all age groups, ranging from 47 to 35 percent among voters over 65 years old and 60 to 24 percent among voters 30-44 years old.

Booker has recently raised six times the amount of money as the nearest Democrat in the race for a U.S. Senate seat. He has also spent more than all candidates combined, Democrat or Republican, according to the latest campaign finance reports.

“We remain focused on doing everything we can to talk to voters about the mayor’s record of bringing people together to take on tough challenges and making the case that his ability to find common ground will allow him to get things done in the Senate for New Jersey families,” said Kevin Griffis, Booker spokesman.

The special primary election is set for Aug. 13, with a special general election for the U.S. Senate seat of the late Frank Lautenberg scheduled for Oct. 16.

The Quinnipiac poll surveyed 2,042 New Jersey voters between Aug. 1-5, with a margin of error of 2.2 percentage points.


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