Poll: Blumenthal-McMahon Race Still Tight

HARTFORD (AP) — Connecticut’s US Senate race continues to be tight, according to a new poll released Tuesday.

The Quinnipiac University poll shows Democratic Attorney General Richard Blumenthal slightly ahead of former wrestling executive Linda McMahon, 51 percent to 45 percent, among likely voters in the November 2 election. Three percent remain undecided and 11 percent of those who chose a candidate said they could change their minds before Election Day.

Blumenthal has watched his lead in the race shrink. He had a lead of ten percentage points among registered voters in last month’s Quinnipiac poll over McMahon. He had a 17-point lead among registered voters in July’s poll and a 33-point lead in March.

Douglas Schwartz, poll director for the university, said the race is surprisingly close, given that Blumenthal has a 70 percent approval rating as attorney general.

“With seven weeks to go and lots of money to be spent, anything can happen,” Schwartz said.

The poll released Tuesday surveyed 875 likely voters from September 8 to 12 and has a sampling margin of error of plus or minus 3.3 percentage points.