CA-GOV Primary Poll
Republican businessman John Cox has nudged ahead of former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa for second place in California's race for governor, while Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom has shored up his front-runner status among voters, according to a new poll from the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California.
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With the June 5 primary approaching, Cox's rising fortunes in the governor's race should be well received by Newsom — facing a Republican in the November election will likely increase his odds for victory. No Republican has been elected to statewide office in California since 2006, and Democrats currently hold an edge of nearly 20 percentage points over the GOP in voter registration.
With Newsom's comfortable lead in the polls and fundraising, the governor's race now appears to be a contest for second place — sufficient to advance to the general election under California's top-two primary system. Predicting which candidates will make the cut is another matter. A quarter of likely voters in the state remain undecided, making the race extremely volatile, PPIC President Mark Baldassare said.
According to the poll, Newsom leads the field with 28% support among likely voters. Cox was favored by 14% and Villaraigosa, a Democrat, by 12%, a narrow difference within the margin of error. Among the remaining candidates included in the poll, Assemblyman Travis Allen (R-Huntington Beach) was supported by 10% of likely voters, state Treasurer John Chiang was favored by 6% and former state schools chief Delaine Eastin by 5%. Chiang and Eastin are Democrats.
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