IL-Gov: Quinn Has Wide Primary Lead In Own Poll

Anzalone-Liszt for Pat Quinn (8/18-26, likely voters, no trendlines):

Pat Quinn (D-inc): 54

Dan Hynes (D): 26

Undecided: 20

(MoE: ±3.6%)

Hynes, the state Comptroller, apparently had hoped to run for AG, but Lisa Madigan decided to stay put, foreclosing that option. So instead of going for the open Senate seat, he decided to take on an incumbent governor. Hynes currently has a bigger warchest than Quinn (around $3.5m to <$1m), and supposedly thinks he can gain the backing of the Daley machine. But Quinn is no David Paterson – despite a bruising few months spent fighting with the state legislature, he has 72% favorables and a 68% job approval (Hynes is at 56% & 61%, respectively). That makes him the rare sitting governor whose constituents don’t, it seems, hate his guts. (UPDATE: At least as far as Dem primary voters are concerned, as sulthernao points out.)

Illinois has the earliest primary in the nation, Feb. 2, 2010 – just five months away. Hynes might be able to gain more traction thanks to his financial advantage, and Quinn’s ratings are not invulnerable (just think “jobless recovery”). But Hynes, so far as I know, hasn’t released a poll to counter this one. I’ll be very curious to see if he does.

The full memo is available below the fold.