A new poll is out in the Seattle mayor’s race, and it doesn’t bode well for the incumbent.
The SurveyUSA poll, commissioned by Seattle TV station King 5, was conducted just after the first televised debate between Mayor Mike McGinn and state Senator Ed Murray last week.
Of the 557 likely voters reached by phone, 52 percent said they would vote for Murray if the election were held today, 32 percent said they would vote for McGinn.
That represents a slight gain for the mayor, who polled at 30 percent in September.
Fifteen percent said they were undecided. The margin of error was 4.2 percent.
McGinn’s campaign disputed the numbers. “SurveyUSA has yet to accurately predict the mayor's vote totals," said McGinn’s spokesman Aaron Pickus by email. According to the campaign, the SurveyUSA poll relies too heavily on voters who have landlines, and doesn’t accurately represent younger and less affluent voters, who might use cellphones.
Murray’s campaign said it’s pleased with the new poll, but cautioned the numbers are likely to tighten in the coming weeks, as voters start to focus on the race.
King County Elections plans to mail out ballots for the November 5 election on Wednesday, October 16.
