Democratic Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper has tied former Republican Scott McInnis for the first time in the Colorado race for governor, suggesting voters have been turned off to the former Congressman by revelations he plagiarized an article commissioned by the conservative Hasan Family Foundation.
A Rasmussen poll conducted last Thursday showed Hickenlooper led McInnis 45 percent to 43 percent among likely voters. Although the margin of error was +/- 4 percent, making the lead statistically insignificant, McInnis had been posting about a six-point lead over Hickenlooper since March. The number of likely voters viewing McInnis as “very unfavorable” rose approximately 10 points to 24 percent, while only 9 percent view him “very favorably.”
Still, only one in three voters are following the plagiarism story “very closely”. McInnis plagiarized articles he was paid $300,000 to produce between 2005 and 2006. (McInnis left Congress in 2004.) However, of those that are following the story “very closely,” 54 percent think he should leave the race. Overall, 35 percent think he should stay in, while 36 percent think he should quit.
McInnis’ primary rival, Dan Maes, did not fare much better than McInnis, trailing Hickenlooper by virtually the same margin, 43 to 46 percent.
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