The new Rasmussen poll of the Illinois Senate race gives Republican Mark Kirk a narrow lead against Democrat Alexi Giannoulias, for the Senate seat formerly held by President Obama.
The numbers: Kirk 44%, Giannoulias 40%, and Green Party candidate LeAlan Jones 4%. The survey of likely voters has a ±4% margin of error. In the previous Rasmussen poll from last week, Giannoulias had 44%, Kirk 43%, and Jones 4%.
From the pollster’s analysis: “Highlighting the closeness of this contest is the fact that Kirk and Giannoulias have now run within four points or less of each other in 10 surveys since early June. Jones’ support has held steady at four percent (4%) for the last three surveys.”
This new poll was conducted entirely before last night’s acrimonious debate, but it does provide a useful baseline measurement for any potential changes down the line. The TPM Poll Average gives Kirk 44.1%, Giannoulias 42.3%, and Jones 3.6%.
