Poll: Nelson maintains lead over Scott

TALLAHASSEE – Bill Nelson holds a 6-point lead over Gov. Rick Scott in the U.S. Senate race heading into the final two weeks before Election Day, according to a poll released Monday by Quinnipiac University.

Nelson, the incumbent Democrat, is leading Scott, his Republican challenger, by a tally of 52-46 percent, a result that shows little movement since last month’s Quinnipiac poll, taken before Hurricane Michael bashed the Panhandle. Two percent were undecided.

It’s the second straight poll showing Nelson with a lead outside the margin of error. CNN released a poll Sunday showing him with a six-point edge on Scott. But in a different poll on Sunday, St. Pete Polls showed the race in a virtual tie, with Scott pulling 48.6 percent to Nelson’s 48.3 percent.

“The Florida race is one of a handful of contests around the country that will decide control of the U.S. Senate,” said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University poll. “Sen. Bill Nelson and Gov. Rick Scott have spent so many millions of dollars on television ads it is almost impossible to avoid seeing them.”

Nelson’s advantage comes mainly from the support of independents, women and minorities. He has a 60-38 percent advantage with independents and outpolls Scott 59-39 percent among women, more than making up for Scott’s 54-44 percent edge with men.

The poll included 1,161 responses from likely voters over landlines and cell phones from Wednesday to Sunday. The poll had a turnout model of 35 percent Republicans, 32 percent Democrats, 29 percent independents and 4 percent other. The margin of error is 3.5 percentage points.