Matt Gunterman December 3rd, 2007

Outgoing Attorney General Greg Stumbo (D) drops some tidbits about the results of his soon-to-be-released polling on a potential bid against Sen. Mitch McConnell (R). According to Stumbo, his polling shows him even with McConnell in the Louisville area (and, of course, it will be interesting to see how those numbers show Stumbo performing in western Kentucky, particularly, and one would hope he’d be leading in eastern Kentucky) and leading other potential Democrats in a primary. Moreover, any potential personal baggage that McConnell could use in the campaign doesn’t seem to be resonating with voters in the poll.

Mark Hebert of WHAS was the first with this story over the weekend, but Ryan Alessi over at PolWatchers also has an interesting installment.

Stumbo Says He’s Tied With MM in Louisville

Greg Stumbo tells me he’s got a portion of his poll numbers back and they show him in a dead heat with Mitch McConnell in Louisville and easily beating other potential democratic candidates in a statewide primary race.

Before you read on I’ll caution you that I haven’t seen Stumbo’s poll questions or numbers so you can believe what you wish about Stumbo’s perspective on the results. The Attorney General says his pollster hasn’t compiled numbers from the rest of the state but the data from Jefferson County shows Stumbo in a tie with McConnell if the race were held today. That’s not a surprise. McConnell’s job approval numbers in Jefferson and surrounding counties are lower than in the rest of the state.

But according to Stumbo, the biggest news might be that poll respondents were unphased by the pollsters recounting of all of Stumbo’s personal baggage, which would surely come up during a campaign: his refusal to pay child support for a son born out of an extra marital affair; a car crash in which Stumbo claimed he wasn’t driving; the Kent Downey fiasco when Stumbo was Majority Floor Leader in the House. Stumbo says voters were told about all of the nasty things that might be thrown at him in a political race and it didn’t hurt his numbers. The reason, according to Stumbo, is that the incidents are “old news” and most voters have already been exposed to them.

And he says democrats view his office’s takedown of the Fletcher administration as a good thing that has sparked some momentum for their party. That’s why he’s leading Crit Luallen and Andrew Horne by a wide a margin in his poll, according to Stumbo. The Prestonsburg democrat says he’s spent the past couple days talking to big donors from New York City, folks who have maxed out in their donations to the Democratic Campaign Committees. Stumbo says he wouldn’t be doing that if he weren’t seriously considering a run for Senate. What he hasn’t figured out is whether he can raise the money necessary to take on the $20 million man (McConnell) and whether he really wants the change in lifestyle that serving in Washington would bring.

• 2008 KY U.S. Senate Race , Greg Stumbo , Opinion Polls
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