A hot-off-the-press Chicago Tribune poll shows 10th District Congressman Mark Kirk with a growing lead over the crowded field of GOP contenders, with 47% of likely Republican primary voters choosing Kirk. Businessman Patrick Hughes continues to lag far behind, at 8%, with several other candidates, including downstate former judge Donald Lowery, school board member Kathleen Thomas, businessman John Arrington and self-described muckraker Andy Martin all coming in at 3% each. There are only nine days left until the February 2nd primary.
The last Tribune poll in December showed Kirk with 41% of the vote, with Hughes and Thomas at 3%, so Kirk continues to increase the distance from his competitors.
Hughes has been trying desperately to gain momentum and traction in this campaign, largely through outreach to the "Tea Party" movement. So far, it doesn't seem to have gotten him anywhere:
Hughes has sought to cultivate support from disaffected Republicans and others through the "tea party" movement critical of higher taxes and spending and big government, citing Kirk's initial support for cap-and-trade legislation to limit carbon emissions. Kirk, a social moderate, has since said he would not vote for such legislation in representing the entire state.
More than half of GOP voters said they agreed with the tea party movement, including nearly 70 percent of those who describe themselves as very conservative. But that hasn't translated into support for Hughes. The survey found Kirk being supported by 48 percent of Republicans who said they backed the tea party movement while Hughes got only 10 percent support.
This bad news for Hughes comes on the heels of the disclosure that his campaign is nearly broke -- despite desperate appeals for money from supporters, Hughes reported only $22,561.34 in the bank as of January 13th, 2010.
The Tribune article also indicates that former banker Alexi Giannoulias is clearly maintaining his lead, despite a spirited challenge from former U.S. Attorney David Hoffman. Giannoulias has raised over $3.5 million in this campaign cycle. He has spent heavily to guard his flank against Hoffman.
As of January 13th, Mark Kirk reported raising almost $5 million for this campaign to date, and has over $3 million in the bank.
The Chicago Tribune said:
U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk is the favorite in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate, and for very good reason. He has been an extraordinarily effective representative of the independent-minded 10th Congressional District for a decade. His track record shows he has conservative principles and he has the instincts to succeed in Washington, no matter which party is in control.
Kirk is universally regarded as the GOP's best chance to win against Giannoulias and pick up the U.S. Senate seat once held by President Barack Obama. His major media endorsements include the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times, the Daily Herald, the Northwest Herald, the Kane County Chronicle, the State Journal Register, the Peoria Journal Star Earlier and earlier today, the Champaign News-Gazette.
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8 comments:
Mark survived round 1. This has more to do with conservatives not loving hughes and mark's work in the navy.
Round 2 will be more difficult. The democrats will help him with conservatives when they call him a bushie, but his numbers with independents and democrats are going to take a beating. Hughes will hurt him because now the media hates his guts for moving to the right.
It will also be interesting to see how the media treats him as he is the first viable moderate republican senate candidate from illinois since 1984. When it comes to national issues they generally treat republicans here as either liberals who are hated by their base or wacko conservatives.
FOKLAEAPS
sell the DSCC talking points some place else. the media hates Alexi - and they like Kirk. this is going to be fun to watch.
The media does not hate Alexi... they despise him and all laugh at him behind his back.
Alexi is a mob banker who lost $160m in the college savings of Illinois families.
A vote for Alexi is a vote for more Illinois corruption.
TA, you can add the St. Louis Post Dispatch with their glowing endorsement of Congressman Kirk. The downstaters who read that paper will read a very well done piece on our Congressman. Oh yes, they've endorsed Hoffman on the Democrat side. GO, MARK,GO.
You're wrong about the media, FOKLAEAPS.
Anonymous?
Anon,
You can say whatever you want, but why do you think Mark played hide and seek the last 8 months? Because he hates the press? Or because he wanted to avoid a debate over his conservative credentials.
the media lost credibility when it drank obamas koolaid. They can hate alexi, but they hate a lot of people and that doesnt stop them from getting elected. Rich Miller, who ta loves, on saturday wrote that hoffman was surging. Hoffman is in 3rd place. They also backed dolt and mckenna and dillard, all clowns.
conservatives are treated like products of my ellen by the media here. Peter Fitzgerald was our best senator ever and he got trashed because he was a normal pro-life dude. you never hear them describe stroger as a member of the far left, his positions never come up.
FOKLAEAPS
I haven't noticed that Kirk's been "hiding". Only Hughes and his people claiming that he has been because he didn't participate in the last debate.
Kirk's been out front recently on issues that are important to ALL Rs--and even to many D Voters as well (healthcare, Thomson, Guantanamo, gangs, etc.). (Though the Ds in office probably aren't very happy with him because of that.)
Mark Kirk is not hiding. He's working for his district since he is a seated Congressman. He's meeting voters on the weekends and serving in the Navy one weekend a month (and in Afghanistan during the Christmas break). He doesn't need to debate with a group of candidates who collectively can't come close to the knowledge this exceptional man has about the issues, i.e., the economy, healthcare, defense, and foreign policy.
Baxter and Beau's Mom
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