Ipsos for St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald/BayNews9/Central Florida News 13. 5/22-24. Registered voters. MoE 4% (No trend lines)
Marco Rubio (R) 27
Charlie Crist (I) 30
Kendrick Meek (D) 15
Crist is getting more Democrats (38%) than Meek (31%). He's handily winning independents (39%) compared to Rubio (12%) and Meek (7%). He also gets 26% of Republicans, likely the ones who admit that Obama was born in Hawaii.
More beneficial, from a short-term policy perspective, is that moving left has proven wildly popular for Crist:
Crist's veto of a controversial teacher "merit pay" bill appears to be a political winner, with voters supporting Crist's decision by a 53-29 margin. Of more immediate concern is that, by a 55-31 margin, voters want Crist to veto a bill that would require women seeking abortions to undergo ultrasounds at their own expense. That number includes a 47-40 plurality among Republicans, and a massive 72-26 spread among indies.
He is also considering calling the legislature into special session to pass a ban on offshore oil drilling.
In the governor's race:
Bill McCollum (R) 34
Alex Sink (D) 32
The race is certainly beginning to tighten once again:
McCollum's rise maxed out in late February, and his lead began eroding soon after joining the lawsuit, as Florida Attorney General, against the new health care law. While the move proved popular with the Glen Beck teabagger crowd, the rest of Florida doesn't seem to enchanted with the idea. While this poll didn't ask about the health care law lawsuit, a Q-poll back in mid-April found:
Voters say 54 - 40 percent that it's a "bad idea" for McCollum to file a lawsuit challenging the federal health care overhaul. Voters say 38 - 28 percent, including 41 - 27 percent among independent voters, that it makes them less likely to support his gubernatorial bid.