The latest Marquette University Law Poll shows businessman Tim Michels and former Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch neck and neck in the GOP primary for governor.
The poll released Wednesday also showed Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes and Alex Lasry, on leave from his post with the Milwaukee Bucks, leading the Dem primary field for GOP U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson’s seat.
In the GOP guv primary, 27 percent of Republican respondents — including independents who lean Republican — said they would vote for Michels in the primary. Kleefisch came in at 26 percent. Meanwhile, businessman Kevin Nicholson came in at 10 percent and Rep. Tim Ramthun, R-Campbellsport, at 3 percent. Thirty-two percent of Republican primary voters were undecided.
The margin of error for the 359 GOP primary voters surveyed is 6.3 percentage points.
The previous April poll, conducted before Michels entered the race, had placed Kleefisch ahead of her opponents, with 32 percent of respondents saying they backed her. Nicholson’s numbers haven’t moved since then, and Ramthun’s went down a percentage point.
In general election matchups, Kleefisch came in at 43 percent against Evers’ 47 percent. Michels polled 41-48 against Evers, with Nicholson 40-48 and Ramthun 34 to 51.
The margin of error for the full sample of 803 registered voters is 4.3 percent.
Meanwhile in the U.S. Senate primary, 25 percent of Democrats — including independents who lean Democratic — said they would support Barnes, up from 19 percent in April. For Lasry, 21 percent said they would back his bid, up from 16 percent in April. State Treasurer Sarah Godlewski received 9 percent support and Outagamie County Exec Tom Nelson got 7 percent — both two percentage point increases from April. Thirty-six percent were undecided.
The margin of error for the 381 Democratic primary voters surveyed is 6.2 percentage points.
A general election matchup of each Senate candidate placed Barnes at 46-44 percent against Johnson, Godlewski at 45-43, Nelson 44-43 and Lasry 42-45.
The poll showed Republicans are more enthusiastic to vote than Democrats and independents. Of likely voters, 67 percent of Republicans said they are very enthusiastic about voting compared to 58 percent of Democrats and 35 percent of independents.
Meanwhile, poll shows the share of Wisconsinites who say the state is on the wrong track has remained steady compared to the April poll, with 56 percent compared to 37 percent who said it is headed in the right direction. In the last poll, 56 percent said the state was on the wrong track and 36 percent said it is going in the right direction.
The poll found 48 percent approved and 45 percent disapproved of the job Evers is doing, largely unchanged from April’s 49-43 split. Only 10 percent of Republicans said they approve of Evers’ performance, compared to 80 percent of Democrats and 39 percent of independents.
The poll found 44 percent had a favorable view of Evers, while 42 percent had an unfavorable view. That’s compared to 47 percent favorable and 42 percent unfavorable in April.
Johnson’s favorability has remained fairly consistent, with 37 percent saying they view the senator favorably and 46 percent unfavorably, compared to a 36-46 split in April. In the latest poll, 16 percent said they hadn’t heard enough about Johnson or didn’t know how they felt. Republicans are more likely to view Johnson favorably, with 71 percent saying they approve of Johnson compared to just 5 percent of Democrats and 36 percent of Independents.
The poll did not ask about approval of Johnson’s job performance.
President Biden’s job approval rating has fallen to 40 percent — the lowest number in MU Law School polls since he took office. His approval rating was 43 percent in April. Among Democrats, 82 percent approve of Biden while 27 percent of independents and 6 percent of Republicans approve of the president.
The poll also showed a majority of respondents still believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases and that a majority of Wisconsinites support gun control measures.
Fifty-eight percent said abortion should be legal in all or most cases, while 35 percent say it should be illegal in all or most cases.
Meanwhile, 81 percent of respondents said they would support red flag laws, which allow police to take guns from people deemed a danger to themselves or others. Thirteen percent said they oppose those laws. In addition, 79 percent said they would support mandatory background checks on gun purchases at gun shows or through private sales, compared to 16 percent who oppose that measure.
A 56 percent majority said they would support raising the minimum age for gun purchases to 21 percent versus 38 percent who say the minimum age should be kept at 18.
The poll also found inflation a top concern of voters, with 75 percent saying they are very concerned and 20 percent saying they are somewhat concerned.
The poll was conducted from June 14-20 through landline and cell phone using random-digit dialing.
See the poll release:
https://law.marquette.edu/poll/2022/06/22/mlsp70-press-release/
See more about the poll:
https://law.marquette.edu/poll/2022/06/22/detailed-results-of-the-marquette-law-school-poll-june-14-20-2022/
