Public Policy Polling (1/20-23, West Virginia voters, no trendlines):
Joe Manchin (D-inc): 50
Shelley Moore Capito (R): 41
Undecided: 10
Joe Manchin (D-inc): 57
David McKinley (R): 28
Undecided: 14
Joe Manchin (D-inc): 60
John Raese (R): 31
Undecided: 9
(MoE: ±2.9%)
I think, if you were to try and set up West Virginians' feelings about their politicians as a mathematical equation, it would look something like this: Joe Manchin > Shelley Moore Capito > (very large gap) > various other Dems > various other Republicans. This can be seen in PPP's sample this week, which starts with their look at the 2012 Senate race, with Manchin beating all Republican opponents and having made the jump to federal office with sky-high approvals down somewhat but mostly intact, at 52/32 (with much of the drop in approvals coming from liberals, believe it or not). Capito is in similar very-positive terrain at 54/30, but nevertheless loses to Manchin, probably because of the disparity in Dem vs. GOP registrations in West Virginia and that there's little Dem defection from Manchin.
Public Policy Polling (1/20-23, West Virginia voters, no trendlines):
Earl Ray Tomblin (D): 40
Shelley Moore Capito (R): 48
Undecided: 12
Earl Ray Tomblin (D): 54
Clark Barnes (R): 22
Undecided: 24
Earl Ray Tomblin (D): 49
Betty Ireland (R): 32
Undecided: 19
Earl Ray Tomblin (D): 53
Mike Stuart (R): 20
Undecided: 28
John Perdue (D): 33
Shelley Moore Capito (R): 52
Undecided: 15
John Perdue (D): 41
Clark Barnes (R): 23
Undecided: 36
John Perdue (D): 37
Betty Ireland (R): 37
Undecided: 26
John Perdue (D): 41
Mike Stuart (R): 21
Undecided: 38
Natalie Tennant (D): 37
Shelley Moore Capito (R): 49
Undecided: 13
Natalie Tennant (D): 49
Clark Barnes (R): 23
Undecided: 28
Natalie Tennant (D): 43
Betty Ireland (R): 32
Undecided: 26
Natalie Tennant (D): 48
Mike Stuart (R): 22
Undecided: 31
Rick Thompson (D): 29
Shelley Moore Capito (R): 54
Undecided: 18
Rick Thompson (D): 34
Clark Barnes (R): 24
Undecided: 43
Rick Thompson (D): 31
Betty Ireland (R): 37
Undecided: 32
Rick Thompson (D): 33
Mike Stuart (R): 22
Undecided: 45
(MoE: ±2.9%)
If you have the stamina to wade through all 16 of these gubernatorial permutations, you can see a definite pattern: Dems win big, unless the GOP gets Shelley Moore Capito into the race, in which case she's favored (or unless Rick Thompson wins the nomination, as he manages to lose to Betty Ireland). The question PPP asks specifically says "If the candidates for governor this year were..." so, however, keep in mind that Capito has basically declined to run in the special election. Nevertheless, she hasn't ruled out a run in 2012, so assuming these numbers stay valid for another year, there's a distinct possibility that whichever Dem wins the special election in 2011 could have a very short tenure if Capito does decide to run in 2012. In fact, if Earl Ray Tomblin doesn't win the Dem primary, we could have two one-year gubernatorial terms in a row. Tomblin starts in a good place, though, with 42/20 approvals; Betty Ireland seems to fare the best of the "other" GOPers, with 33/19 faves.
If you're wondering, here's who all these various people are:
Earl Ray Tomblin: Democratic state Senate president and acting Governor until the October 2011 special election
John Perdue: Democratic state Treasurer
Natalie Tennant: Democratic Secretary of State
Rick Thompson: Democratic state House speaker
Shelley Moore Capito: Republican Rep. from WV-02
Clark Barnes: Republican state Senator
Betty Ireland: Republican ex-SoS
Mike Stuart: Republican state party chair |
