A new Mason-Dixon poll in Florida, commissioned by the Tallahassee-based public relations first Ron Sachs Communications, confirms the general consensus that Republican Gov. Charlie Crist is the immediate favorite to win the open Senate seat of retiring GOP Sen. Mel Martinez in 2010.
In the Republican primary against his more conservative challenger, former state House Speaker Marco Rubio, Crist currently enjoys a 53%-18% lead. Granted, a lot can happen between now and the primary in August 2010, but at the moment Crist is on top.
The Democratic primary is up in the air, with Rep. Kendrick Meek leading state Sen. Dan Gelber by 26%-16% — the real leader is “Undecided” at 58%. In general election match-ups, Crist leads Meek by 55%-24%, and Crist is ahead of Gelber 57%-22%.
Also, in the gubernatorial race, Republican state Attorney General Bill McCollum has a 40%-34% lead over state Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink, but the high number of undecideds really makes this a pretty fluid race for now.
(Via David Weigel)
