A new poll out from Florida shows a tight race for support from the state’s Democrats, and just as importantly, relatively weak support for Bush.
Just in time for the Florida Democratic Party’s annual convention, which begins today at Disney World, a St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald poll shows Dean, Clark, and Lieberman as the early favorites. (margin of error +/- 5%)
Dean — 16%
Clark — 15%
Lieberman — 15%
Gephardt — 8.5%
Kerry — 6%
everyone else below 5%
These results are significantly different from a November poll conducted by Mason-Dixon, which showed Lieberman with a big lead over his Dem rivals. Nevertheless, considering the poll’s margin of error, Dean, Clark, and Lieberman appear to be in strong positions, and all three will be able to tout this poll at the state convention today.
The best news for Dems from the Times/Herald poll was the slim margin of Bush’s lead in Florida among all voters. In a head-to-head match-up between Bush and a generic Dem nominee, Bush only led by six percentage points — 43% to 37%. That’s great considering the Dems haven’t really begun campaigning in earnest in Florida yet.
Guess we can look forward to another nail biter in Florida next year. Great.