Poll: Norwood at 45 percent, Reed at 25 percent
October 30, 2009 at 4:51 pm by Thomas Wheatley in NewsA new Insider Advantage poll shows Mary Norwood’s still the frontrunner in the Atlanta mayor’s race with 45 percent support. Kasim Reed trails with 25 percent. Lisa Borders, who until two weeks ago was second in the race, is third with 16 percent. Jesse Spikes is in the low single digits. Eleven percent of the poll respondents were undecided. (Here’s a link to a PDF of the poll’s crosstabs.)
So sayeth pollster Matt Towery, CEO of IA:
“Based on this survey, if the election were held today, Norwood would likely be within one or two percent of winning the race without a runoff. Her barrage of ads and the apparent decline in Borders’ support suggests that white voters are moving to Norwood. That said, Reed now appears to be the African-American candidate with substantial support from the black community.
What’s interesting about the mayor’s race right now: It’s about image rather than platforms.
Borders, Reed and even the Georgia Democratic Party have accused Norwood of being a Republican. Norwood, who invited the criticism after she said earlier this week that she couldn’t remember if she ever voted for George W. Bush, responded with a TV ad. In it, she rattles off the names of Democrats and even Ross Perot, which, in my opinion, might’ve done her more harm than good.
The Reed campaign today issued a statement calling the Norwood spot a “slick and calculated denial of her well-documented Republican past” and a “scheme to trick Atlanta’s Democratic majority into making a false choice on the eve of this election.”
Political wonks take note: Campaign disclosure reports, which’ll tell us how much cash each candidate has to spend in the final days before Nov. 3, are due today at 5 p.m.
October 30th, 2009 at 5:10 pm
I trust the Creative Loafing Vote-a-Meter more than Matt Towery’s Donald Trump hair wearing ass.
He is a republican pawn that wants to get Mary elected.
I have my own polling sources and they are the following:
Mary 35%
Kasim 23%
Lisa 21%
Other 5%
Undecided 16%
This race is still wide open.
Matt Towery is an idiot, and get’s paid to be one.
October 30th, 2009 at 5:13 pm
We don’t have to wait for the next disclosure. David Shafer (remember him? Guy Milner’s best buddy? Staunch conservative? Big whig in state GOP? Potential candidate for Lt. Gov?) is already on previous Reed disclosures. My guess is you will find a lot of bi-partisan support for all three lead candidates. None of that has anything to do with public safety or any of the other issues important to us in this city. I’m no Norwood fan, but this crap has got to stop. Whatever happened to “moving Atlanta forward together”?
October 30th, 2009 at 5:16 pm
Matt Towery is a GOP pawn?!? That is the funniest thing I have read today.
October 30th, 2009 at 5:20 pm
Mary couldn’t remember if she voted for George W. Bush(?) C’mon! That was one of the most polarizing elections in recent history. Her answer says it all. She’s lucky it’s not public record so she can say whatever she wants.
October 30th, 2009 at 5:22 pm
I’m sure Towery and the rest of the GOP would love to have Kasim and Norwood in a runoff, because they know that nobody north of I-20 will vote for Kasim. And not because he’s black, because he’s crooked and using the city to pad his pockets.
This race is still very close, and if Borders makes the runoff she will win.
October 30th, 2009 at 5:22 pm
I have to agree with Larry…everyone remembers who they voted for the two times George Bush ran. Not cool, Mary.
October 30th, 2009 at 5:26 pm
I’ve been leery of these Towery polls all along. Reed’s unexplained climb toward Norwood in just a few weeks should make anyone watching this thing wonder, has anything actually changed in the race to reflect that.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Norwood’s numbers were significantly lower and Borders and Reed were really statistically deadlocked for second.
How about Reed pay for another poll like last time?
October 30th, 2009 at 5:26 pm
Would the twitsnap guy please upload the suicide bomber lady picture, the one who says Mary’s ‘not telling you the real truth’?
Ricky’s reaction could be typical. This Dem attack could backfire and push Mary over the top. God help us.
October 30th, 2009 at 5:28 pm
@Ricky – I agree with you about moving Atlanta forward. Unfortunately, both Norwood and Reed are too polarizing and will only serve to set Atlanta back. In my humble opinion, I truly believe that Borders will serve as the bridge this city so desperately needs.
Atlanta has too many problems right now to get caught up on race. Mary Norwood isn’t a bad choice because she’s white (I actually think she’s a nice lady), I think that she isn’t the right choice because of her lack of viable solutions out of our current mess. I’m voting for Lisa because she has those solutions.
October 30th, 2009 at 5:34 pm
VHighlands is right. I don’t like politicians who equivocate. Stand up, have some guts and tell the truth. Maybe she feels she would not have the opportunity to explain how disappointed she was with much of Bush’s actions. Too bad, this answer is worse than telling the truth.
October 30th, 2009 at 5:59 pm
i’ve met matt towery when he briefly wrote a column for “atlanta citymag”/”dossier” when i worked for that rag many moons ago.
in person, he seemed to be a complete tool who couldn’t be trusted.
but maybe the man has changed?
i’m very curious about how other reputable pollsters view the integrity insideradvantage.
he seems to be a GOP party operative masquerading as a nonpartisan pollster.
the man was campaign chair for NEWT GINGRICH and did later serve as a republican member of the ga legislature.
October 31st, 2009 at 6:15 pm
I once meet Matt’s hair. I had a great conversation with it, then I realized it was orange. Never trust hair pieces unless they are standard brown, black, or blond.
November 1st, 2009 at 3:50 pm
Matt Towery used to serve as the campaign chairman for Gnewt Gingrich… That makes me think he is about as republican as they come…maybe even more so than Norwood.