Poll: Chafee still leads RI gov race

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) - Lincoln Chafee remains on top in the race to become Rhode Island’s next governor, but Democrat Frank Caprio is not far behind, according to a new poll released Friday by Rasmussen Reports.

• In-Depth: Rhode Island Governor's Race

Chafee, the former Republican senator now running as an independent, was backed by 37 percent of likely voters, compared with 30 percent for Caprio, if the Republican candidate is John Robitaille.

Robitaille, a former aide to Gov. Donald L. Carcieri, would get 23 percent of the vote, with 8 percent of voters undecided and 2 percent saying they would vote for “some other candidate.”

Against the other potential Republican candidate, state Rep. Victor Moffitt , Chafee would get 36 percent of the vote to Caprio’s 33 percent, with Moffitt getting 18 percent. With Moffitt as the G.O.P. standard-bearer, 9 percent of voters were undecided and 4 percent backed another individual.

Similar to May

Voters’ preferences were little changed from Rasmussen’s last poll in late May.

The automated telephone survey of 500 likely voters was conducted on Wednesday, after Caprio’s opponent for the Democratic nomination, Attorney General Patrick Lynch, dropped out of the race. The poll has a margin of error of 4.5 percent.

The primary election where Republicans will pick Robitaille or Moffitt is scheduled for Sept. 14. The general election is Nov. 2.

Republicans still unknown

Voters’ impressions of Chafee and Caprio were not far apart, with 28 percent viewing Chafee very favorably and 22 percent viewing Caprio very favorably. But far more felt very unfavorably about Chafee – 28 percent – than Caprio, at 8 percent.

Robitaille and Moffitt remain largely unknown to the electorate, with Robitaille viewed very favorably by just 7 percent and Moffitt viewed that way by 6 percent. Both men were viewed unfavorably by 11 percent of those polled.

Voters are split on the job performance of Carcieri, who is finishing his second term and barred by term limits from running again. His approval rating fell four points to 49 percent, with 48 percent expressing disapproval.

Immigration, health care

Rasmussen also asked Rhode Islanders voters about their opinions on the economy and other national issues.

A total of 64 percent of those surveyed said the country was still in recession, and only 31 percent said the economy was getting better, versus 40 percent who said it was getting worse. Just 9 percent rated the economy as good or excellent.

On immigration, 53 percent of Rhode Islanders said they would like the state to enact a law similar to Arizona’s controversial measure. Half of local residents also oppose the U.S. Justice Department’s suit against Arizona’s law, versus 41 percent who support it.

There was far less support in Rhode Island than elsewhere for repealing the sweeping health care reform law signed in March by President Obama. The poll found 49 percent of local voters favor repealing the law while 45 percent oppose doing so.

Rhode Islanders were also less supportive of domestic oil exploration than other Americans, with only 48 percent supporting offshore drilling and 40 percent supporting deepwater drilling.