The Guv is up for now:
Charlie Crist is up by four points in a poll taken April 24-25 for the Associated Industries of Florida. But it’s all downhill from here, says pollster Jim McLaughlin.
In the poll of 600 likely voters, conducted by McLaughlin & Associates, Crist was favored by 33 percent of respondents. Marco Rubio was favored by 29 percent and Democrat Kendrick Meek by 15 percent.
The poll shows Crist taking more votes from Meek than Rubio. Crist actually does better with Democrats than Meek, with 41 percent of them saying they would vote for him compared to 31 percent for Meek.
Crist pulls in 22 percent of Republicans, compared to 56 percent for Rubio.
But not for long:
Crist pulls in 36 percent support from blacks, compared to 45 percent for Meek.
McLaughlin says the numbers are not good for Crist. He notes that Hillary Clinton initially had a lot of black support, but it evaporated as President Obama’s campaign gained steam.
“He’ll be lucky to get 10 percent of the African-American vote on election day,’’ says McLaughlin.
McLaughlin also says as the election goes on, Democrats and Republicans will start heading back to their own candidates. As Crist’s poll numbers drop, that dynamic only will increase.