A recent poll of 500 likely voters shows well-known Republicans Scott Romney and Connie Binsfeld hold a slight advantage in the race for two seats on the MSU Board of Trustees.
The poll, commissioned by the Lansing-based newsletter Inside Michigan Politics, showed Romney, a Detroit-based attorney and board incumbent, received 22 percent of the support. Binsfeld, a former lieutenant governor, garnered 21 percent of the support.
Meanwhile, Democratic candidates Dorothy Gonzales and Cal Rapson were each supported by 19 percent of those polled. Gonzales is a board incumbent and Rapson is a Flint-based regional director for the United Auto Workers.
Eleven percent of those polled were undecided about one candidate while some 50 percent were struggling to choose two candidates. The board race is determined through a statewide election.
But what happens at the top of the election ticket is more important than a poll, said Bill Ballenger, editor and publisher of Inside Michigan Politics.
“You never know,” he said about the potential results.
“It’s anybody’s ball game.”
The poll was taken by the Lansing firm IMP/MRG. Trustee candidates serve eight-year, unpaid tenures. The board is responsible for setting the university budget and implementing policy.
Other factors that could determine the race’s outcome will be name recognition of the GOP candidates, Ballenger said. Romney is the son of former Gov. George Romney and Binsfeld was current Gov. John Engler’s lieutenant governor two years ago.
Although he’s leading in the recent poll, Romney said he knows it’s not going to be an easy race.
“It was a very small percentage of people,” said Romney, who was appointed to the board in August after Democrat Bob Traxler resigned. “I didn’t consider that a meaningful lead. You don’t know until the election day who’s going to win.”
And at least one Democratic candidate echoed Romney in saying the poll probably means little. Rapson said he’s not overly concerned.
“We feel very optimistic about it,” he said of the race. Rapson said he’s been working hard to get his message out throughout the state, including speaking at a rally with Vice President Al Gore on Wednesday in Flint.
“I’m talking about getting everybody to vote the entire ticket because that is so important to the bottom of the ticket,” Rapson said. “We just need to be getting our message out there.”
