Poll: Race for Congress narrows

Erin Neff

Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2002 | 9:46 a.m.

Dario Herrera's campaign released results of a poll Monday suggesting the race for Nevada's 3rd Congressional District is growing closer.

A poll of 500 voters in the district conducted between Aug. 7 and 11 found Herrera trailing Republican Jon Porter by just 3 percentage points when voters were given a selection of five candidates for the seat.

The survey was conducted by Doug Schoen of New York-based Penn, Schoen and Berland Associates.

Herrera, a Democrat and chairman of the Clark County Commission, trailed Porter 38 percent to 35 percent in the poll. Three third-party candidates received a combined 11 percent with 16 percent of voters undecided. The poll had a margin of error of 4 percent.

Schoen said the numbers -- much better for Herrera than in two recent surveys -- are the result of a weakening economy, corporate scandals, health-care costs, Social Security and Yucca Mountain.

"I believe that Dario has the clear advantage on all these top issues," Schoen wrote in a memo to the campaign dated Aug. 14.

Herrera's campaign hyped the results as proof its candidate is making progress.

"Dario's got great momentum," Herrera's campaign spokeswoman Elizabeth Alexander said. "We didn't believe the two recent polls that have come out."

A poll commissioned by Porter gave Porter a 12-point edge. A survey by the Review-Journal showed a 16-point advantage for Porter.

Schoen's poll did show a wider margin when voters were asked to pick between only Porter and Herrera (44 percent to 36 percent).

Porter's campaign downplayed Herrera's polling, arguing voters are not yet engaged and that little has changed to reduce Porter's edge.

"I don't think the race is that close right now," Mike Slanker, Porter's campaign consultant, said.

Slanker said neither Porter nor Herrera has better than 60 percent name identification numbers, so he questions how only 16 percent of voters were undecided.

"Technically speaking, any poll taken in the middle of the summer, with no TV being run, with no incumbent and in a new seat that says 84 percent of the people have made up their mind, is hard to believe," Slanker said.

Herrera did begin television ads this weekend and will take part in a fund-raiser next week in Las Vegas with House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, the Democrat from Missouri.