Television personality Geraldo Rivera has insisted that he’s seriously considering a run in the 2014 U.S. Senate race in New Jersey as, but a poll released Thursday may not be the most promising sign for his potential candidacy.
According to the latest poll from Monmouth University, 65 percent of Garden State voters said it is unlikely that they will vote for Rivera in the Senate race: 51 percent said it was “not at all likely” that they would back the Fox News commentator and another 14 percent said it was “not too likely.” A combined 26 percent of New Jersey voters said it was either “very likely” or “somewhat likely” that they will vote for Rivera, who said he would run as a Republican.
The television host has been very candid about his interest in the race. Rivera first revealed that he was “truly contemplating” a Senate bid on his radio show late last month. The next day, he used his platform on Fox to discuss his candidacy, which he said would serve to give voice to the segment of the GOP that is moderate on social issues such as same-sex marriage and abortion. His flirtation with a run has given more juice to a race that had already commanded the public’s attention for the ongoing tension between Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), who will be up for re-election next year, and Newark, N.J. Mayor Cory Booker (D).
