A new poll from the right-wing Club For Growth, which is supporting Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman in the NY-23 special election, says that Hoffman is ahead in the three-way race — and moderate Republican Dede Scozzafava in third place.
The numbers: Hoffman 31%, Democrat Bill Owens 27%, and Scozzafava 20%. The margin of error is ±5.66%.
This is contrary to other polls that have shown Owens in front, Scozzafava second, and Hoffman third. The Club points out that no information about the candidates was given before the ballot question, meaning that they did not try to prime the pump for Hoffman in the lead-up to asking people for their preferences.
From the pollster’s analysis: “Hoffman now has a wide lead among both Republicans and Independents, while Owens has a wide lead among Democrats. Dede Scozzafava’s support continues to collapse, making this essentially a two-candidate race between Hoffman and Owens in the final week.”