New poll from Rasmussen on gubernatorial race

March 19, 2010 16:05 pm

by Jason · 37 comments

Rasmussen is out with some new polling in head-to-head general election match-ups between former Gov. Roy Barnes and the top four Republicans.

The poll also shows overwhelming support for the issue of Sunday alcohol sales to be decided by residents over local leaders.

Barnes vs. Deal

Roy Barnes   40% 
Nathan Deal   43%
Other 5%
Undecided   13%

Barnes vs. Handel

Roy Barnes   39% 
Karen Handel   42%
Other 5%
Undecided   14%

Barnes vs. Johnson

Roy Barnes 40%
Eric Johnson   38% 
Other 6%
Undecided   16%

Barnes vs. Oxendine

Roy Barnes 41%
John Oxendine   41% 
Other 6%
Undecided   11%

{ 36 comments }

ready2rumble March 19, 2010 at 4:09 pm

Ox continues to fall like a rock

Steve Perkins March 19, 2010 at 4:25 pm

Peach Pundit calculus:

y=41
plots as the curve of
y=100 – x
where y is in the set of all Oxendine poll numbers

Mayonnaise March 19, 2010 at 4:14 pm

I’m guessing all are essentially tied when you factor in MOE.

ByteMe March 19, 2010 at 4:20 pm

And Rasmussen’s inherent over-weighting of Old White Republicans in all his polls.

Jason Pye March 20, 2010 at 9:51 am

I can see the crosstabs. It doesn’t look like he is over-weighing anything.

ByteMe March 20, 2010 at 10:12 am

So how did he handle the fact they didn’t talk to anyone using a cell phone or VOIP and only went with land-line calls, which skew predominantly older and whiter?

Doug Deal March 20, 2010 at 11:04 am

The normalize the data against party affiliation and such.

The hidden secret is that polls are not so much scientific as guesswork. The pollster has to guess about expected turnout, current party identification and other factors then adjust the raw number to fit his beliefs.

If the polls were truly random, multiple polls would come up with the same answer. They don’t, and often vary consistantly by as much as 10%. The ones that are accurate know their art and have good instincts about voting patterns.

Think of it this way. Most competitive elections (the only ones generally polled) finish with a 0-10% spread. If the average poll has a MOE of 3-5% (that actually means +3 to +5 for one candidate and -3 to -5 for the other or a 6-10% spread), what do they really mean in close races?

BuckheadConservative March 23, 2010 at 9:25 am

Byte, attacking Rasmussen’s credibility is soooo 2004. We’ll wait while you catch up.

ByteMe March 23, 2010 at 9:40 am

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Pine Knot March 19, 2010 at 4:24 pm

Deal is beginning to emerge as the most serious contender to defeat King Roy.

B Balz March 20, 2010 at 8:56 am

When you hear Nathan Deal speak, he has the polish, toughness, and experience needed to swing a vote. He has an innate pugilistic skill to debate a trial lawyer like Roy Barnes and win.

Not my first pick, I am just sayin’…..

DMZDave March 22, 2010 at 3:07 pm

Plus, if you are a Democrat no matter who wins, Roy Barnes or Nathan Deal, you can be happy. Neither voted for Ronald Reagan and both supported Bill Clinton.

peachstealth March 19, 2010 at 4:55 pm

Rasmussen over-weights people who say they are likely voters. If that’s Old White Republicans, then so be it

Gary Cooper March 20, 2010 at 10:51 pm

He also seems to be the most accurate. Been following him since 2003 and every election he polls for is generally within .5 to 1.5% point of the exact vote total.

I always love that line that people who disagree with this polls throw out. The one about young people not getting polled because they only have cell phones or VOIP. Yeah, doesn’t seem to be hurting him.

ByteMe March 21, 2010 at 8:02 am

Gary, you really have to stop reading Rasmussen’s press releases that proclaim his accuracy on the final poll, but conveniently ignore his 2-3% point tilt toward the Republicans in every single poll up to that last one.

His model of “likely voters” is incorrectly weighted (if he weights it), and his sampling is one-sided so he misses most young and urban voters.

Learn to ask more questions like “how do you determine a likely voter?” The answer most times is “they voted in the last x election cycles, which immediately throws out any voter who wasn’t old enough to vote last time.

Doug Deal March 19, 2010 at 5:11 pm

What are those numbers when you add “who’s under an ethics cloud and Congressional ethics investigation” after Deal’s name?

Because that’s going to be his name if he gets the nomination.

Romegaguy March 19, 2010 at 7:12 pm

it will be his name in the primary too

Mozart March 20, 2010 at 5:35 pm

That message has to be delivered to the voter, Doug. Having it appear on blogs and in the various newspapers in the state do not reach anywhere near the number of voters it may have once upon a time…

Doug Deal March 19, 2010 at 5:16 pm

I would like to see Austin Scott included in these.

polisavvy March 20, 2010 at 9:19 am

I think you will eventually. He’s not out of this thing, in my opinion.

Ludwig Von Beachbum March 19, 2010 at 5:23 pm

How do Razzamatazzz make the claim two candidates are dead even when 4.5% is the margin of error ….. in itty bitty small writing at the bottom of the page.

If you are about accuracy wouldn’t you say the candidates withing the error margin are just that?

Oh look , they all are.

Ludwig Von Beachbum March 19, 2010 at 5:50 pm

All of them are within the 4.5%

I declare the poll………. not that exciting !

Jane March 19, 2010 at 8:59 pm

I have not heard from little red in a while, I guess he is upset Ray McBerry was not in the poll.

Doug Deal March 19, 2010 at 9:07 pm

Or he was afraid that McBerry might touch him in a *different* way, like he did that student.

B Balz March 20, 2010 at 8:57 am

Ouch! ! !

ReaganRepublican March 19, 2010 at 9:26 pm

Georgia knows that Nathan Deal is the steady and reliable hand needed to lead Georgia through the difficult times ahead.

Republican Lady March 19, 2010 at 9:38 pm

I disagree. I think Georgia knows that Karen Handel has the ethics, knowledge, skills, and ability, to take the ride all the way to West Paces Ferry. If they haven’t heard yet, they will by July.

The Atlanta Business Chronicle printed the new supporters of the Republican candidates and she had at least a dozen. The others only had four to six as I recall.

http://atlanta.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/2010/03/22/story4.html

Ludwig Von Beachbum March 20, 2010 at 7:08 am

She didn’t take her elected term as Secretary Of State “all the way”

Wouldn’t the true supporters of the candidate be known the day after the election ? You really think that link is impressive relating that Handel has signed on an X big money BellSouth executive and Chamber member to her campaign as sign of support ? ( I am not going to pay to read the rest of the article ) Was she trying to one up Eric Johnson who put a big money Reynolds ( was doing business with the state ) on his? AND YOU WANNA SHOUT ETHICS ??

This is what’s wrong with the Republican party.

ByteMe March 20, 2010 at 8:49 am

She didn’t take her elected term as Secretary Of State “all the way”

So in the vernacular of Georgia Politics, “we only got to third base with her.”

Ludwig Von Beachbum March 20, 2010 at 10:09 am

That was good

Republican Lady March 20, 2010 at 9:30 pm

She was ethical in leaving her Secretary of State position to run for an office in which she would oversee the elections in July, August (if there is a run-off), and November. She strongly believes in transparency and ethical behavior and has the courage to make the hard decisions. As I have asked before, would you have accused her of manipulating the results if she had stayed?

As for the article, she got some great support as reported in the Atlanta Business Chronicle, so why do you think that is unethical? The article also listed the supporters the other candidates have picked up, so what is the problem?

Mike Hauncho March 19, 2010 at 10:21 pm

It’s funny how Ox declares that he is the only one who can beat Roy yet he is tied in the polls. He needs to focus on the primary. Karen, Eric and Nathan are all focused on July 2o. Come to think of it, Ox, stay focused on November.

Ken Stepp March 20, 2010 at 7:30 am

Looks like Karen is still doing great. Three points separate her and Deal from Barnes. Glad to see both of them ahead of Barnes. We’ve been there and done that. I’d hate a Barnes repeat.

Daniel N. Adams March 23, 2010 at 9:53 am

Since it is obvious that no one from the other parties can win, might as well vote for OTHER . That is, if you really want someone who’ll fight for your liberty and not just give it lip service.

GOPGeorgia March 24, 2010 at 10:19 pm
GOPGeorgia March 24, 2010 at 10:19 pm

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