Republican Jack Ciattarelli’s supporters are more fired up about voting for him to be New Jersey governor than Rep. Mikie Sherrill’s backers are for her, a new poll found.
A firm 91% of likely Ciattarelli voters are enthusiastic about him, compared to 86% for Sherrill (D-NJ), according to a Quinnipiac University poll.
Despite that enthusiasm gap, Sherrill is still leading Ciatterlli 50% to 44% among likely Garden State voters, just over two weeks out from Election Day, the survey showed.
“The raucous debates are done, the attack ads are everywhere, and the race is close, with Sherrill holding a slight advantage,” Quinnipiac University Polling Analyst Tim Malloy observed.
“As the clock ticks down to Election Day, voter enthusiasm will translate into turnout. For the moment, in that category, Ciattarelli has an edge.”
Polling tightened late last month, and at the start of October — with a few showing a dead-even race. An internal Ciattarelli survey gave him a one-point lead.
Sherrill now has a 4.6 percentage point lead over Ciattarelli in the latest RealClearPolitics aggregate, which is down from her near double-digit highs over the summer.
The two candidates drew mixed marks from voters on various flashpoint issues.
A slim plurality of voters said they trust Ciattarelli more than Sherrill when it comes to handling the economy (47% to 44%), according to the Quinnipiac poll.
Sherrill edged out Ciattarelli slightly when it comes to overseeing New Jersey’s schools (50% to 41%) and transit (48% to 38%).
Meanwhile, the two were dead even when it comes to public safety, drawing 45% apiece.
The Quinnipiac poll comes a week after Sherrill and Ciattarelli faced off on the debate stage.
The survey sampled 1,327 likely New Jersey voters from Oct. 9 to 13 with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.
