Despite Republicans now touting a plurality of registered voters in the state, the new Mason-Dixon poll shows – if the election were held today – Beshear would have a 9-point advantage over the leading Republican candidate, Attorney General Daniel Cameron.
Over a third of Kentucky Republicans surveyed gave Beshear favorable job approval ratings as well.
Asked about the positive numbers for his campaign in a reliably red state, the governor said he believes his focus on improving the lives of Kentuckians transcends politics.
"I think people see that this administration isn't trying to pull Kentucky to the right or left but just to move it forward," he said. "In the end, if we continue to do a good job and create those brighter futures, the people of Kentucky will ask us to keep doing it for another four years."
On the Republican side, Attorney General Cameron won more support than all of the other GOP candidates in the race combined, with 39% of likely GOP primary voters putting him at the top of their list. Still, there remains a healthy pool of undecided Republican voters — 29% — who have yet to pick a favorite.
Even with the new numbers showing Beshear outperforming him in a hypothetical general election match-up, Cameron said in a statement that the early polling shows him well-placed to consolidate support among Republicans.
“Poll after poll demonstrates General Cameron is by far in the best position to unify the Republican Party and take on Andy Beshear in the general election," Cameron's campaign said. "Our campaign is diligently working so that as May’s primary election approaches, we will rally conservatives behind General Cameron as he is the only Republican who can win in November.”
One other bit of encouraging news for Team Beshear: the survey showed his overall approval rating holding at around 60%.
