A new poll from Emerson College shows tight races between Ashley Hinson and Josh Turek for the U.S. Senate and between Zach Lahn and Rob Sand for governor. We break down what this poll could mean for the November election.
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The new poll shows Republican Ashley Hinson ahead of Democrat Josh Turek in the Senate race. Hinson leads with 50% support compared to Turek’s 45% support.
In the gubernatorial race, Democrat Rob Sand leads this poll with 49%, compared to Republican Zach Lahn’s 46%.
State Auditor Rob has attempted to portray himself as a moderate who can appeal to non-Democrats. This poll may suggest that the strategy is working.
“About six percent of voters in the Iowa poll are splitting their ticket to support both Republican Ashley Hinson for Senate and Democrat Rob Sand for Governor,” Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College Polling, said. “Independent voters break for Sand over Lahn by a 12-point margin…”
Does this mean Lahn’s campaign is in trouble? Not necessarily.
Everyone knew this would be a tough gubernatorial race of Zach Lahn. Rob Sand is smart and well-funded. Moreover, he’s been positioning himself to run for governor for nearly a decade. Likewise, this election cycle was destined to be a tough year for Republicans generally.
But despite those advantages, Sand’s lead is within the margin of error.
It does serve as a warning to Iowa Republicans. Terrace Hill will not be easily won. It must be earned. More must be done to expose Sand’s actual policies, which consistently lean left, rather than his populist campaign image. More must be done to communicate Lahn’s “Iowa First” vision to the voters.
The Emerson poll proves that this will be a difficult election but that victory is well within reach for Republicans.
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