Sandoval polling well, Reid working hard

A new statewide survey shows 54 percent of likely voters would choose Republican Brian Sandoval for governor of Nevada compared to 31 percent who prefer Democrat Rory Reid.

The 23 percentage point difference in the Rasmussen poll of 500 likely voters is wider than most recent surveys, suggesting the poll is a bit of an outlier or Sandoval received a bump due to his primary win over incumbent Gov. Jim Gibbons.

A statement with the latest poll from Rasmussen said Sandoval, a former federal judge and Nevada attorney general, is running stronger with Republicans than Reid, chairman of the Clark County Commission is with Democrats.

From Rasmussen: "But Republicans seem to be quickly coalescing around his candidacy and that of Senate nominee Sharron Angle. Eighty-nine percent (89%) of the state’s GOP voters now support Sandoval, while Reid earns just 58% support among Democrats. Voters not affiliated with either party prefer the Republican by a two-to-one margin."

Reid's campaign appears undaunted with five months to go until election day. They had nearly five times as much cash on hand as Sandoval did on June 1, the most recent reporting date, and are employing a wide network of field organizers to make one-on-one contact with potnetial voters.

They're also taking an aggressive stance toward Sandoval, urging the front-runner to live up to his primary election night promise to debate the issues.

In a press release Friday morning Reid accepted invitations to debate Sandoval on two in-state political television shows and called for more interaction.

"But will Brian Sandoval live up to his word?," Reid's statement read. "Or will he continue ducking debates, as he did during the Republican primary, when he participated in only one debate?"

Reid is also building a robust online operation for his campaign. Reid's campaign Facebook page has 9,225 "likes" compared to 3,551 for Sandoval, as of Friday morning.

The website Real Clear Politics affirms Sandoval's front-runner status by ranking the race "likely GOP."