United Liberty

The latest survey the Republican primary for Florida’s Senate seat shows Marco Rubio leading Gov. Charlie Christ by 32 points, according to Public Policy Polling:

Rubio now leads Crist 60-28, including a staggering 71-17 lead with conservatives. Crist has a 49-36 advantage with party moderates, but they account for just 31% of likely primary voters compared to 65% who describe themselves as conservative.

Rubio is benefiting from a widely held sentiment among Florida GOP voters that Congressional Republicans are too liberal and that Crist would add to the problem. 41% of them think that the party leadership in Washington is too liberal, and with those folks Rubio holds an 83-10 lead. 50% think that Crist himself is too liberal and with those voters Rubio’s advantage expands even wider to 90-5.

If Crist, who has a 56% disapproval rating among Republicans, were to decide to run for re-election, he would also be trailing Bill McCollum, the GOP frontrunner in that race.

As has been pointed out by pundits, the only way Crist can win is to switch parties or run as an Independent, which he has said he would not do.

While the primary is several months away (August 24th), it seems that former Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio is running away with Republican nomination for United States Senate over Gov. Charlie Crist:

A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely GOP Primary voters in the state finds Rubio leading Crist 49% to 37%. Three percent (3%) prefer another candidate, and 11% are undecided.

The new numbers mark a stunning turnaround. Crist was the strong favorite when he first announced for the Senate seat, and Rubio was viewed as a long-shot challenger.

But Crist’s support fell from 53% in August to 49% in October. By December, the two men were tied at 43% apiece.

Rubio leads Crist by 17 points among men and by seven among women. He also carries 52% of the conservative GOP vote, while moderates prefer Crist.

Crist is still viewed favorably by GOP voters (62% approve), but they disapprove of his overall performance (56% disapprove) as Governor.

A new Quinnipiac University poll shows Marco Rubio beating Florida Governor Charlie Crist, though inside the margin of error, in the Republican primary for United States Senate, and the leading Democrat in a prospective general election match-up:

Former State House Speaker Marco Rubio has squeaked past Gov. Charlie Crist in the race for the Republican U.S. Senate nomination, leading 47 - 44 percent and topping Gov. Crist on trust, values and conservative credentials, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today.

Rubio beats the leading Democrat, South Florida Congressman Kendrick Meek, 44 - 35 percent in a general election matchup, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds. Crist leads Meek 48 - 36 percent.

Crist’s lead over Rubio was well into double-digits at different points last year. Crist has been taken some hits over his support of stimulus spending, though he remains popular in the state. Rubio has come on strong and is seen as the conservative candidate.

Primary voters don’t head to the polls until August 24th, so we’re nowhere near the end of this race.

On Thursday I posted a link to a new website sponsored by the Club for Growth that offered a pledge to lawmakers, candidates and citizens to help repeal ObamaCare should it pass the Congress this year.

Since the launch of Repeal It, 5,203 citizens (likely to be more by the time you read this) have given their pledge to support candidates for federal office that will work to repeal the legislation being falsely promoted as “health care reform.”

Twenty-nine lawmakers, members of the House and Senate, have signed the pledge for their respective chambers promising their states and districts that they will repeal ObamaCare.

And 58 candidates for either the House or Senate have also taken the pledge to “to sponsor and support legislation to repeal any federal health care takeover passed in 2010, and replace it with real reforms that lower health care costs without growing government.”

Three signers of the candidate pledge are candidates we’ve been following here at United Liberty because of their extraordinary stances on issues of economic and personal liberty: Adam Kokesh (R-NM-3), Rand Paul (R-KY-Senate) and Peter Schiff (R-CT-Senate).

Other notable candidates that have signed the pledge are:

Rasmussen is out with new polling from Florida that shows Marco Rubio pulling even with Gov. Charlie Crist in the primary for the Republican nomination for United States Senate:

A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely GOP Primary voters finds Crist and Rubio each with 43% of the vote. Five percent (5%) prefer another candidate, and nine percent (9%) are undecided.

Crist’s support has fallen from 53% in August to 49% in October. Rasmussen Reports noted at the time, “The fact that Crist has fallen below 50% in a primary against a lesser known opponent suggests potential vulnerability.”

Rubio’s name recognition has grown in recent months and he is now viewed Very Favorably by 34% of Likely Primary Voters. That’s up from 18% in August. As his name recognition increased, Rubio’s support in the polls has jumped from 31% in August to 43% today.

Crist, well known throughout the state, has seen his ratings go in the opposite direction. Just 19% now have a Very Favorable opinion of him, a figure that represents a double digit decline since August.

This should come as no surprise. The Club for Growth has endorsed Marco Rubio in his bid for Florida’s open seat in the United State Senate:

“Marco Rubio is the real deal, one of the brightest young stars in American politics today, and a proven champion of economic liberty,” said Club President Chris Chocola. “He is a dynamic spokesman for the principles of limited government and economic freedom, and he will make a fantastic Senator.”

Rubio served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2000-2008, and was elected to the Republican leadership as Majority Whip, Majority Leader, and finally, Speaker of the House. Rubio is an advocate of lower federal spending, tax relief and tax reform, union members’ right to a secret ballot, and market-driven energy and environmental solutions.

Rubio’s Republican primary opponent is Florida Governor Charlie Crist, who supported President Obama’s $787 billion stimulus, proposed a state “cap-and-trade” energy program, and this summer broke his pledge not to sign any state tax increases.

“Charlie Crist has repeatedly joined with big government liberals on major economic issues facing America today, from taxes to spending to cap-and-trade,” Chocola said. “He represents the wrong direction for our economy and our nation.”

Rubio has gained ground on Crist in recent polls, however, he still has a long way to go to catch up.

Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, a candidate for the state’s open Senate seat, is the target of a new ad from the Club for Growth on his support for the “stimulus” bill:

Crist is trying to fool Florida voters by running ads about his grade from the Cato Institute on fiscal policy for his first two years in office. Cato recently hit back at Crist, pointing out that his actions since that grade are not the actions of a fiscal conservative.