A new study from the NW Progressive Institute (NPI), a group that leans to the left, shows that Attorney General Bob Ferguson is ahead in his race for governor of Washington. The national poll found that Ferguson, a Democrat, now has a bigger lead over Reichert, the Republican front-runner.
For the governor election on May 15, 16,615 voters were asked who they would vote for in a two-way race. This information can be found on the NPI website.
Andrew Villeneuve, the executive director of the NPI, said that 48% of voters chose Ferguson, 42% chose Reichert, and 10% were not sure.
The NPI website says that this is the second statewide poll in which Ferguson was in the lead.
“After coming in just behind Reichert in November of last year, Ferguson jumped ahead of the former Republican congressman in February, giving herself a four-point lead.” His lead has grown to six points now. Reichert, on the other hand, is staying the same, getting the same amount as he did in the winter, the NPI said.
Early polls show that Ferguson is likely to win the General Election
Villeneuve said, “If he keeps going in this direction, he might be at or near 50% by the summer. That’s what we call the magic number in polling.”
Villeneuve said that all the fuss about the other two Bob Fergusons might have been good for AG Ferguson.
“Getting his name out there got him a lot of attention, which could have been good for him.” “He also looked sympathetic. I mean, there was an attempt to confuse and trick voters, which was against the law,” he said.
The people had different thoughts on Ferguson, though. Villeneuve said that 38% of the people he polled had a good opinion of Ferguson and 39% had a bad opinion. Not only that, but he also said that those numbers are similar to Reichert’s: 30% liked Reichert and 29% didn’t.
Villeneuve said that their study also showed that more people don’t like two other top candidates: Democrat State Sen. Mark Mullet and Republican Semi Bird.
“Many more people haven’t heard of them, but those who have a bad opinion of both of them,” he said.
Initiatives backed by Republicans lost Votes
Along with the results of the governor’s race, polls for a number of Republican-backed measures were also made public. This means that Brian Heywood’s (a hedge fund manager who runs the voter campaign group Let’s Go Washington) and State Republican Rep. Jim Walsh’s (a Republican) plans for education, climate action, and long-term care may be on their way to failure.
People who make more than $250,000 a year in capital gains would no longer have to pay an excise tax when they sell or trade certain long-term assets. According to pollster GBAO on NPI’s website, it would mean less money for education, early learning, babysitting, and building new schools. 32% of those polled said yes, 62% said no, and 6% weren’t sure.
NPI says that Initiative 2117 would stop state agencies from selling carbon tax credits and get rid of laws that set up a cap and invest program to lower greenhouse gas emissions. That means less money would be available for transportation programs, investments in green energy, and projects that protect against the effects of climate change. 37% of people who answered that poll said yes, 57% said no, and 6% were not sure.
People who work for themselves or for a company would have to choose to keep coverage under RCW50B.04, and they could choose not to at any time. It would also get rid of a rule that gave employees an exemption. This means that less money would be available for long-term care services. 41% of those polled said yes, 49% said no, and 10% said they weren’t sure.
“This new round of polling confirms two previous rounds of polling from late last year that shows all three of these extreme initiatives trailing badly,” Defend Washington strategist Kurt Fritts told NPI. While Brian Heywood and Jim Walsh may want to cut back on public services, most people in this state value efforts to improve education and early learning, protect and clean our air and water, and give workers long-term care benefits. These people don’t want big cuts in funding for these things, and when they find out what will happen if these bills pass, they strongly oppose them.
Villeneuve said the results are the same as what NPI and Stop Greed polled. But he also said that politics is hard to predict, so he couldn’t say what would happen in the fall.
