By TODD STACY, Alabama Daily News
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – New internal polling shows Dothan businessman Jeff Coleman surging in the race for Alabama’s 2nd Congressional District and within single digits of winning without a runoff.
According to survey research data paid for and conducted on behalf of the campaign, Coleman now leads a head-to-head matchup with other candidates with 41% of the vote. Here is the full horserace breakdown from the Coleman poll:
- Jeff Coleman 41%
- Troy King 23%
- Barry Moore 14%
- Jessica Taylor 5%
- Bob Rogers 2%
- Terri Hasdorff 0%
- Undecided 14%
The numbers show the combined percentage of voters who said they were “definitely” and “probably” going to support each candidate. That’s a tactic pollsters use to cut down on high undecided rates resulting from voters not wanting to make a hard decision.
Looking into the data, it is clear that Coleman’s surge to lead the pack has coincided with his barrage of television, radio and billboard advertising. According to the same survey taken in September, just before the first ads started, only 15% of voters had heard of Coleman. On this new survey, taken Jan. 6-9, that number was up to 74%, with 51% saying they had a favorable view versus 4% unfavorable. The poll was a brushfire survey of 400 likely Republican Primary voters and has a Margin for Error of +/-4.9%. It was conducted by Meeting Street Research, the same firm that five-term Rep. Martha Roby has used for her campaigns.
Meanwhile, Prattville businesswoman Jessica Taylor announced this week that she raised more than $200,000 in the final quarter of 2019. Taylor gained attention early in the race thanks to a viral announcement video and high profile cable news appearances, but still lags behind in name identification, according to the Coleman poll.
Coleman also announced that his campaign had raised more than $330,000 in the 4th Quarter, likely setting the pace for the field.
Full campaign finance reports are not due until Jan. 31.