Florida’s hotly contested and all-important U.S. Senate race between Gov. Rick Scott (R) and Senator Bill Nelson (D) continues to tighten as the latest Quinnipiac poll has the two men tied 49-49.
Scott has enjoyed a slight lead over Nelson since late May, but this poll could indicate that Nelson, with the help of liberal Democratic activists supporting gubernatorial nominee Andrew Gillum, could be making a real push in the weeks leading to the general election.
Still, the Real Clear Politics average of polls has Scott leading Nelson by a mere 1.7 percentage points.
Here are some of the poll's internal numbers:
The gender gap is a mirror image as men back Gov. Scott 53 - 45 percent, while women back Sen. Nelson 53 - 45 percent. This is the first survey of likely voters in this race by the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University Poll, and can not be compared to earlier surveys of registered voters.
White voters back Scott 55 - 44 percent, as black voters back Nelson 90 - 5 percent. Hispanic voters go Republican 59 - 39 percent.
Nelson leads 89 - 8 percent among Democrats and 56 - 43 percent among independent voters. Scott leads 92 - 7 percent among Republicans.
Among Florida likely voters who have named a U.S. Senate candidate, 92 percent say their mind is made up.
Voters approve 49 - 43 percent of the job Nelson is doing as a U.S. Senator and give him a 48 - 42 percent favorability rating.
Voters approve 51 - 46 percent of the job Scott is doing as governor and give him a divided 49 - 47 percent favorability rating.
