In Georgia Primary, There is Favorite Son Newt Gingrich, Leading By 4:1 Over Barely Visible Mitt Romney, with No One Else in Sight:
Newt Gingrich of Georgia runs away with the Georgia primary, in small part because fellow Georgian Herman Cain has dropped out of the race, and in large part because every part of the Republican Party has united behind him, according to a SurveyUSA poll conducted for WXIA-TV Atlanta.
4 weeks until the first vote is cast in Iowa and 3 months until the last Super Tuesday vote is counted in Georgia, it's Gingrich 65%, Mitt Romney 12%, and everyone else far back.
Among likely Georgia primary voters, Gingrich's support is above 60% among both pro-life and pro-choice voters, among both rich and poor voters, both evangelical and non-evangelical voters, males and females, conservatives and moderates, educated and uneducated, and in every region of the state. Only among Independents, who are eligible to vote in the Georgia Republican primary, does Ron Paul creep up to 16%, but Gingrich still leads Paul among Independents by 3:1.
By the time Super Tuesday comes around 03/06/12, it is possible that only Gingrich and Romney will be the only two candidates left battling for the Republican nomination. SurveyUSA finds important learning in a head-to-head match-up between Gingrich and Romney. 70% of primary voters who would vote for Gingrich in a head-to-head match-up say they do so enthusiastically. 52% of those who would vote for Romney in a head-to-head match-up say they do so "with reservations."
Obama Loses to Either Republican Candidate: Looking ahead to a November general election, Georgia's 16 electoral votes remain safely red. Among all registered Georgia voters, Gingrich defeats Obama 48% to 42%, and Romney defeats Obama 49% to 42%. In 2008, John McCain carried Georgia by 5 points.
61% Favor Some Form of Legalized Gambling. Georgia voters support legalizing gambling, SurveyUSA finds. 26% say they want to legalize casino gambling only. 7% want to legalize pari-mutuel wagering on horses only. 29% want to legalize both casino gambling and pari-mutuel wagering. A minority, 37%, does not want to legalize any form of gambling.
In Some Parts of State, Support for an Increase in Sales Tax to Fund Transportation Improvements: 55% of Georgia voters say they approve of a 1 penny increase in the sales tax to pay for transportation improvements. Since the improvements would be made regionally, only in the regions that vote for the tax increase, it's important to note that in greater Atlanta, and in South and East Georgia, the measure is favored almost 2:1. But in Northwest Georgia, voters split, 47% in favor, 47% opposed. By way of contrast, strong Republicans oppose the tax 5:4. Strong Democrats favor the tax 7:2.
Whites and Blacks Differ on Whether to Require Volunteer Community Service to Receive Unemployment Benefits: Among all Georgia voters, 59% favor a proposal to require those who receive unemployment insurance to volunteer to perform community service in order to receive benefits, 35% oppose. But whites and blacks see the measure in stark contrast: whites back the measure by 37 points. Blacks oppose the measure by 12 points, a 49 point difference.
Herman Cain Has a Minus 13 Net Favorability Rating: This research was conducted in the several days following Herman Cain's announcement 12/03/11 to suspend his campaign for President. Today, among all Georgia voters, Cain is viewed positively by 24%, viewed negatively by 37%. Among Republicans, Cain is still viewed positively. Among Independents and Democrats, he is viewed overwhelmingly negatively. By contrast, among all Georgia voters, Gingrich is Minus 2, Romney is Minus 12, and Obama is Minus 12.
Cellphone respondents and home phone respondents included in this research: SurveyUSA interviewed 1,364 state of Georgia adults 12/06/11 and 12/07/11. Of them, 1,176 were registered to vote. Of the registered, 362 were determined by SurveyUSA to be likely to vote in the 03/06/12 Republican Primary. This research was conducted multimode. Respondents who use a landline (home) telephone (76% of registered voters), were interviewed on their home phone in the recorded voice of a professional announcer. Those respondents who do not use a home telephone (24% of registered voters), were shown a questionnaire on their smartphone, tablet, laptop or other electronic device. Cellphone respondents are more likely to support a transportation tax, more likely to favor legalized gambling, more likely to support the requirement of volunteer service as a condition of receiving unemployment benefits, more likely to support Ron Paul for the Republican nomination, and more likely to vote Democrat in a general election for President.
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