Independent candidate Greg Orman has jumped out to a sizable lead over incumbent Republican Sen. Pat Roberts in the Kansas Senate race following the withdrawal of the Democratic nominee from the campaign, according to a new poll from the Democratic firm Public Policy Polling.
The poll, first reported by the Huffington Post, found Orman leading 41 percent to 34 percent. Democratic nominee Chad Taylor, who announced he would withdraw from the race but whom Secretary of State Kris Kobach has ruled must remain on the ballot, attracted 6 percent of the vote.
The PPP poll did not remind respondents that Taylor had stop campaigning.
The poll is one of the first looks at the race since the shake-up earlier this month. An Aug. 19 PPP poll, which preceded Taylor’s withdrawal, found Roberts with 32 percent, Taylor with 25 percent and Orman with 23 percent. That poll also asked about a head-to-head Roberts-Orman match-up without Taylor, and it found Orman leading 43 percent to 33 percent.
The new PPP poll surveyed 1,328 likely voters. It did not provide a margin of error.
Another post-shake-up poll from Survey USA found Orman with a narrow 37 percent to 36 percent lead.
TPM’s PollTracker average gives Orman a slight advantage over Roberts, 39.7 percent to 34.7 percent. Taylor is earning 7.3 percent on average.
