Time to Leave: Second Poll in a Month Shows Senator Martha McSally (R-Az) Trailing Democrat Mark Kelly by Double Digits

June 5th 2020

By Dan Desai Martin

The results of a Fox News poll conducted between May 30 and June 2 show Democratic Senate candidate and former astronaut Mark Kelly leading incumbent Republican Sen. Martha McSally by 13 points in Arizona. The poll is the latest in a yearlong trend showing McSally trailing in a key U.S. Senate race that could help determine which party controls the chamber next year.

The poll results show Kelly leading McSally 50% to 37% among registered voters. Fox News noted that 88% of Democratic voters support Kelly while only 73% of Republican voters back McSally.

The survey is the second statewide poll in a row to show McSally trailing by 13 points. A poll of likely voters conducted in May by OH Predictive Insights showed Kelly leading by a 51% to 38% margin.

The last time McSally led in a poll was more than a year ago, in May 2019, when she held a slim 45% to 44% advantage.

Since then, 11 consecutive state polls conducted by six different polling outfits have shown Kelly ahead, according to Real Clear Politics.

Republicans currently hold a 53-47 majority in the U.S. Senate.

McSally lost a 2018 Senate race to Kyrsten Sinema, the first Democratic senator to represent Arizona in three decades.

After her loss, McSally was appointed to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Sen. John McCain in August 2018 and the resignation of Jon Kyl, who had taken it over, in December 2018.

McSally’s campaign has been plagued by numerous campaign finance law violations and an inability to raise as much campaign cash as Kelly. In late 2019, McSally asked outside conservative groups to air television commercials supporting her because her campaign could not afford to do so.

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