http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/nevada/2006/apr/10/041010827.htmlTopline numbers:
NEVADA GOVERNOR
Jim Gibbons (R) 50%
Dina Titus (D) 33%
Jim Gibbons (R) 44%
Jim Gibson (D) 30%
NEVADA GOVERNOR - GOP PRIMARY
Jim Gibbons 51%
Lorraine Hunt 15%
Bob Beers 11%
Didn't poll the Dem primary, as far as I can tell. Article below.
April 10, 2006
Poll finds Gibbons front-runner in race for Nevada governor
ASSOCIATED PRESS
LAS VEGAS (AP) - Rep. Jim Gibbons remained the front-runner in the race for Nevada governor in a new statewide poll of voters.
The survey of 625 Nevadans conducted for the Las Vegas Review-Journal found the Republican congressman with 50 percent of the vote in a primary or general election, while Republican state Sen. Bob Beers drew the least support of the five gubernatorial candidates.
"Gibbons is still by far the strongest Republican, and he still beats all the Democrats," said Brad Coker, managing partner of Mason-Dixon Polling & Research Inc., the Washington, D.C.-based firm that conducted the survey April 3 through Wednesday.
Respondents chose Gibbons by 50 percent to 33 percent in a hypothetical general election matchup with state Sen. Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas, although 17 percent remained undecided. Gibbons topped Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson, 44 percent to 30 percent.
The poll sampled 268 Republicans, 257 Democrats and 100 nonpartisans. Four hundred interviews were done in Clark County, 125 in Washoe County and 100 in rural Nevada. Female respondents slightly outnumbered men.
Among registered Republicans, 51 percent said they would vote for Gibbons in the primary. Fifteen percent were for Lt. Gov. Lorraine Hunt, and 11 percent favored Beers. Twenty-three percent said they were undecided. The sampling error margin was 7 percentage points for primary questions.
Eric Herzik, a University of Nevada, Reno, political scientist, said the poll results should trouble Democrats.
"For all the negative publicity Republicans have faced recently, these numbers are pretty good," Herzik said.
But Herzik called the poll results bad for Beers.
"With four months to go, he's still barely in double digits," Herzik said, "and he doesn't have the money to take on Gibbons in a media campaign."
Beers campaign manager Andy Matthews said Beers will overcome Gibbons name recognition.
"Right now, U.S. Rep. Gibbons is riding on name (identification)," Matthews said. "But over the next four months, we're going to get our message out, and we'll see that gap close and eventually disappear."
Gibbons campaign manager Robert Uithoven said the poll changed little from a year ago, and noted that Gibbons had been able to weather criticism from other candidates.
A Review-Journal poll in May 2005 had Gibbons with 60 percent of the primary vote. Another poll in October gave Gibbons 53 percent.
The poll showed Gibson improving slightly against Titus since October, and a bit better against Gibbons in a general election matchup.
The Democrats' dilemma is that although Titus is positioned to win the primary by 10 percentage points, she wouldn't fare as well as Gibson against Gibbons in the general election.
Titus said she could beat Gibson and said she would address Gibbons when he was her opponent.
"Nobody has yet held Jim Gibbons accountable for his record in Washington. He's just been coasting," Titus said. "When we start calling him on the votes he's cast against seniors, minorities and children, the numbers will shift."
Hunt campaign manager Frank Roberson said he doubted the reliability of the poll.
