Public Policy Polling (2/16-22, Rhode Island voters, no trendlines):
Sheldon Whitehouse (D-inc): 47
Scott Avedisian (R): 37
Undecided: 16Sheldon Whitehouse (D-inc): 54
Don Carcieri (R): 37
Undecided: 8Sheldon Whitehouse (D-inc): 43
Don Carcieri (R): 31
Buddy Cianci (I): 22
Undecided: 4Sheldon Whitehouse (D-inc): 51
Buddy Cianci (R): 35
Undecided: 14Sheldon Whitehouse (D-inc): 51
John Loughlin (R): 34
Undecided: 15Sheldon Whitehouse (D-inc): 49
John Robitaille (R): 38
Undecided: 13Sheldon Whitehouse (D-inc): 44
John Robitaille (R): 28
Buddy Cianci (I): 24
Undecided: 4
(MoE: ±4.2%)
I wasn’t expecting Sheldon Whitehouse to be in any sort of trouble — it is Rhode Island, after all, one of the bluest states in the union — but PPP confirms that, even when throwing ex-Gov. Don Carcieri in the mix. In fact, what may be most interesting here is that Carcieri, maybe contrary to the Beltway CW (which doesn’t seem to look any further than the fact that he’s an ex-Gov.), is the least popular Republican option (down 17, and with 41/49 favorables).
Instead, Warwick mayor and noted moderate/Linc Chafee ally Scott Avedisian fares the best among all GOPers, sporting a 36/17 favorable and keeping it within 10. John Robitaille, who narrowly lost the 2010 gubernatorial race, also seems to have made a good impression on voters (40/25 approvals and down by 11), but he’s made pretty clear that he’d prefer to run for Governor again in 2014 rather than for Senate. (John Loughlin is a former state Rep. who ran unsuccessfully for the RI-01 open seat, and Buddy Cianci is the disgraced, long-ago former mayor of Providence, who, thanks to his roguish charm, seems to still have some bipartisan support.)
Avedisian hasn’t ruled out a bid, but a Roll Call piece today by Steve Peoples getting various GOP possible candidates on the record has him sounding pretty iffy: “it’s something that I at least want to give some thought to.” The article also points out (as we did in our digest earlier today) that Cranston mayor Allen Fung, who presents a similar profile to Avedisian, just took himself out of contention, while state GOP chair Giovanni Cicione is downplaying any previous interest and talking up Avedisian and Carcieri instead. The article finally also mentions former Hasbro CEO Alan Hassenfeld, although from what I’d heard he’d been mostly looking at an indie bid, if anything.
Finally, the real issue that seemed to get Rhode Island chosen as this week’s poll subject is gay marriage, which is currently under legislative consideration. Support overall is 50-41, a pretty impressive showing in a state, that despite its blueness, is still notably older and more Catholic than average. That’s including 65% support among Dems, 73% opposition among the sample’s 15% Republican portion, and 47-45 support among indies.