Gov. candidates not well known, poll finds
Most voters can't name a candidate when asked by pollster
With Maine's gubernatorial primary eight months away, a poll released yesterday shows none of hopefuls are very well known to voters.
The survey of 401 Mainers, conducted between Sept. 30 and Oct. 7 by Portland polling firm Pan Atlantic SMS Group, showed that a vast majority of Maine voters can't name a single candidate.
That's not unsurprising this early in the game, said Mark Brewer, associate professor of political science at University of Maine at Orono.
"For a race like this, where there is no clear front runner at this point, I don't think those numbers are all that unusual," he said Wednesday. "There's nobody on that list that I'd really expected to jump out and be recognized by a high percentage of people."
There is no shortage of candidates running to succeed Democratic Governor John Baldacci, who is term limited in 2010. Thus far, at least six Democrats, six Republicans and up to eight Independents have declared their intention to run, and others are expected to make a decision in the weeks ahead.
According to the poll, only 66 percent of respondents could name a candidate for governor without help from a questioner. Of those who could name a candidate, state Sen. Peter Mills, R-Cornville, and former Maine attorney general Steve Rowe were each cited by 4.5 percent of respondents. Republican Les Otten was known by 2.7 percent, Waterville Mayor Paul LePage was known by 2.2 percent and Maine Senate Majority Leader Libby Mitchell was named by 2 percent of respondents.
None of the other candidates were named by more than 1 percent of respondents.
With help from a questioner, more respondents admitted recognizing the names of candidates. About 39 percent recognized Mills and Mitchell and about 31 percent knew of Otten. Rowe and LePage were recognized by 24 percent and 16 percent of respondents respectively. Still, even Mills, who ran for the Republican gubernatorial nomination in 2006, wasn't known by 25 percent of respondents, which was the best showing among all candidates.
Of all people, Mills should be most nervous by the lack of name recognition, Brewer said. "Someone like Peter Mills, who has run for his own party's primary the last time around, if I were him I'd be a little concerned my numbers were that low."
Brewer says the lack of name recognition also means the race is wide open. But if the weeks wear on and no front runner emerges, he predicted several potential candidates sitting on the sidelines would "throw their hat into the ring."
