Although Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jennifer Granholm still leads Republican candidate Dick Posthumus in approval ratings, the gap between the two is narrowing, a recent poll suggests.
The poll, released Wednesday by Lansing-based EPIC/MRA, showed more people finding themselves undecided when it comes to their vote between Attorney General Granholm and Lt. Gov. Posthumus.
Since Sept. 12, the percentage of undecided voters has jumped from 3 to 12 percent. The poll was conducted out of 600 eligible voters in the Lansing area.
“As voters continue to focus in on this race and know more about the candidates, we picture our numbers improving,” said Posthumus spokesman Sage Eastman, adding the only approval rating that matters is the Nov. 5 election.
Eastman said the increased number of undecided voters could prove beneficial for Posthumus.
“Our job is to reach those undecided and pull them into our column,” he said.
And the Republicans plan to do that by appealing to students.
“Posthumus has dedicated himself to supporting the Merit scholarship, to cutting property taxes and to widening the job market,” Eastman said. “Those issues are very important to students.”
The poll revealed 50 percent of respondents prefer Granholm over the 38 percent who prefer Posthumus. A poll released last week showed Granholm with a 55 percent approval over Posthumus’ 42 percent.
Granholm spokesman Chris DeWitt said political polls are most often reliable, but can quickly become outdated.
“They are a snapshot,” he said. “A week from now, that poll is really not worth anything, but it does give an indication for those days how the people felt.”
Within the next month, DeWitt said he thinks the polls will only get closer.
“Michigan gubernatorial races are always close and that’s what we are preparing for,” he said.
But DeWitt said he can’t predict whether the percentage of eligible voters who are undecided between Granholm and Posthumus will continue to grow.
Michigan Republican Party spokesman Jason Brewer, said the party is gaining momentum.
“In general, the poll is good for us,” he said. “Granholm’s lead is shrinking and the undecided percentage is growing. If you compare these to what they were a month ago, we’re moving in the right direction.”
