The new Rasmussen poll of the Illinois Senate race gives Republican Rep. Mark Kirk, who has taken heat over false statements about his military service, a narrow lead over Democratic state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias.
The numbers: Kirk 42%, Giannoulias 39%. The survey of likely voters has a ±4.5% margin of error. In late April, when Giannoulias was in the midst of his own negative press surrounding the failure of his family’s bank, Kirk was ahead by 46%-38%. The TPM Poll Average gives Kirk a lead of 43%-38%.
From the pollster’s analysis: “Sixty-two percent (62%) of Illinois voters say they’ve been following news stories about Kirk and his military service, and 63% say this news is important in terms of how they vote this November. Thirty-two percent (32%) say Kirk’s misstatements about his military record are not important in how they vote.”
