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SALT LAKE CITY -- Voters in Utah are starting to make up their minds about the candidates they want to see in office. Dan Jones and Associates has just released results of its latest poll on the governor's race.
Dan Jones and Associates conducted the survey between Sept. 7 and Sept. 13. In the survey of 600 registered voters, Republican Gov. Gary Herbert has 52 percent support; Democrat challenger Peter Corroon has 31 percent; and 13 percent are still undecided.
Governor of Utah election poll
| Candidate | May | Sept. |
|---|---|---|
| Gary Herbert (R) | 45% | <b>52%</b> |
| Peter Corroon (D) | 25% | <b>31%</b> |
| Don't Know | 22% | <b>13%</b> |
"We've got seven more weeks in this campaign, and we'll continue to get our message out," Corroon said Wednesday. "We've seen that when we can get our message out, people will start believing in the Corroon-Allen campaign."
"The Herbert campaign is pleased that it is maintaining a good, solid, double-digit lead," Herbert campaign spokesman Don Olsen said.
Since the last poll in April, Herbert has maintained 20-point lead; though both candidates have seen their numbers go up as the undecided voters have started to make up their minds.
Now the gloves are coming off as the campaigns make strong pitches to the voters during these final weeks.
"I'm attacking Gary Herbert's policy position; I'm not going after him personally," Corroon said. "I believe we need to have campaign finance reform. It's a critical issue."
But will this negative tone, if it continues until Election Day, sway the voters?
"Corroon has been attacking Governor Herbert for many, many weeks on this and that and one thing or another, and they're just not responding to it," Olsen said.
This poll was in the field prior to the controversy surrounding whether campaign contributions to the governor helped a bidder win a large Utah Department of Transportation contract for Interstate 15 reconstruction in Utah County.
Neither campaign would speculate on whether that issue would change poll numbers in the weeks ahead.
E-mail: kmccord@ksl.com
