ICYMI: ‘Gubernatorial Race Pits Mr. Positive vs. Mrs. Negative’

In his weekly column for The Jersey Journal, Joseph Albright highlighted the lopsided polling lead for Democrat Phil Murphy in the New Jersey governor’s race. Murphy is leading Republican Kim Guadagno by 25 points in the latest poll from Quinnipiac University, and enjoys a +19 favorability rating, while Guadagno sits at -8. Guadagno has been dragged down by her disastrous record as lieutenant governor, and it looks like New Jersey voters are ready for a change.  

Read excerpts below, or the entire article online HERE.

The Jersey Journal: Gubernatorial race pits Mr. Positive vs. Mrs. Negative

It’s a most unusual gubernatorial race in New Jersey: it’s Mr. Positive vs. Mrs. Negative. 

In the latest survey, Democrat Phil Murphy gets positive numbers while Republican Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno trails in almost every category. In what appears to be a boring campaign, Murphy leads Guadagno 58 to 33 percent. In earlier polls, Murphy enjoyed at least a 25-point lead.

And it doesn’t end with that survey number. Murphy leads Guadagno among nearly every gender, education level, age, and racial group — with one normal exception: Republicans back Guadagno 78 to 16 percent.  

…

Thirty-seven percent of likely New Jersey voters have a favorable opinion of Murphy, compared to the 18 percent who have an unfavorable opinion of the Democratic candidate. Meanwhile, 43 percent say they haven’t heard enough about Murphy to form an opinion, according to the poll. 

On the other hand, Guadagno has only a 25 percent favorable rating compared to 33 percent of voters who have an unfavorable opinion of her. Forty percent say they haven’t heard enough about the lieutenant governor to form an opinion, the poll found.