Why did Connecticut Gov. Jodi Rell decide not to run for reelection? The morning after her surprise announcement, political observers across the state are still trying to figure out what happened.
A new poll out this morning from Quinnipiac University gives some insight. It shows Rell leading the top Democratic opponent in a hypothetical 2010 gubernatorial matchup by just six points, 46-40.
The poll also shows that former U.S. Senate candidate Ned Lamont is making some headway in his gubernatorial bid just a week after he announced it.
Lamont is trailing Connecticut Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz by three points in a potential Democratic primary. Bysiewicz leads 23-20 against Lamont in the six-way Democratic matchup Quinnipiac tested, essentially making the race a dead heat.
As for Rell, voters still held the Republican governor in high regard even as they increasingly supported a Democratic nominee in a releection race. Rell had faced some scandal of late surrounding political polling she allegedly paid for with state money , but this morning’s poll showed voters weren’t really concerned with the flap.
Rell had been on the bubble about running for reelection for months, but as the Hartford Courant reported, few saw her decision coming:
While many political insiders have been debating for years over whether Rell would run or not in 2010, few actually knew for sure. That small handful included Rell’s immediate family. Even they, though, did not know the timing. Rell said she told her daughter only about one hour before the press conference with reporters, and she called her husband from the Capitol to say that Monday would be the day.
